Things Change
by MysticalDreamer32
Summary: -COMPLETED- DxH Starts during episode 23 and continues from there. Hitomi is taken by Zaibach, then is betrayed by Van and Allen, and joins Zaibach in the war. Swearing, violence, fighting. Happy and Sad endings in the end.
1. Why me?

This is DxH so if you don't like it, don't read it! I just had a great idea while thinking one day of how they could fall in love. Tell me how you like it! R&R!  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne or any characters.  
  
AN: This all begins in episode 23 (Hitomi can see the battle going on and at the end of the episode is sent home... if you still don't know what episode I am talking about, find a website that has summaries of all episodes and read it.)  
  
***It starts right where Hitomi is having the visions of the battle going on and is asking for it all to stop. This is a continuation starting from there... any events after that, like Dilandu going crazy and turning back into Celena, will NEVER happen. Hope that is all clear.***  
  
Chapter 1: Why Me?  
  
"Why am I seeing this? I don't want there to be any more fighting! Van! Stop!"  
  
Hitomi was kneeling on the floor of her room talking to the air around her. The visions were overflowing her mind. Blood, death, fighting. In the center of it all was Escaflowne.  
  
Van was doing much of the killing. Using Escaflowne, he cut through the guymelefs as if they were butter. The gigantic sword stabbed and sliced right through the cockpits, instantly killing whomever was inside.  
  
Hitomi saw and heard everything. The battlefield was covered in blood from broken and battered bodies. The cries from those not dead echoed out like a broken violin. The sounds of steel against steel ricocheted around her.  
  
At every noise, she cringed. No matter how hard she closed her eyes or how tightly she gripped her head, nothing would go away.  
  
On unsteady legs, Hitomi managed to gradually stand herself up. She needed air. All around felt suffocating. Stumbling to the door, with one hand clutching her head, she opened it.  
  
A rush of cool air burst into the room and made Hitomi loose her balance. Clinging to the doorframe for support, she staggered to the railing of the balcony. Her knees were failing her and at last gave out. She collapsed onto the cool stone and silently pleaded for it all to stop. All the strength in her body was being washed away.  
  
"Van... please stop. Stop fighting..."  
  
All of Hitomi's thoughts struck her like a tidal wave. Her mind was flooded with horrifying images.  
  
Suddenly, her throat seemed to be constricted. She choked on the air around her and struggled to breathe. Gasping for oxygen, Hitomi started to panic.  
  
The pendant, that so delicately hung around her neck, was giving a faint glow the whole time. The more time that passed, the brighter the pendant got.  
  
Hitomi's hand lay against her chest just below her neck. Feeling a growing warmth in the palm of her hand, she looked down to see her pendant glowing brightly.  
  
The unknown force that kept Hitomi from breathing slowly retreated and felt her lungs fill with air once again. The images stopped flashing before her eyes. Letting out a sigh, the young seer thought everything was over and her mind to be left in peace. She was wrong.  
  
Just as Hitomi thought nothing could get worse, she was blinded by something. All gravity then ceased to exist as her feet left the ground. Panic fled through her as she realized what was happening.  
  
The blue light had come once again to claim her. Having no control on where it was taking her, Hitomi mentally prepared herself for whatever she was to face next. 


	2. Why him?

Wow... 7 reviews for just the first chapter! I'm so happy! Thank you everyone that reviewed! I'll try to make this chapter longer. Please R&R!  
  
Disclaimer: Don't own Escaflowne or any characters. Don't sue me.  
  
AN: In my fic Dilandau never lost control of the Dragon Slayers... he is still commander of them.  
  
Chapter 2: Why him?  
  
Even though Hitomi did prepare herself for what she was about to witness, it did no good. She landed on her hands and knees trying to regain her vision and balance.  
  
The light faded away just as fast as it had come, going back to the heavily clouded sky.  
  
Hitomi's eyes were tightly shut but a faint smell of something familiar invaded her senses. She felt a warm liquid against her hand and opened her eyes a little bit to inspect what it was.  
  
The first sight filled her mind with nausea. A dark pool of crimson liquid stained her hands. Hitomi, afraid to look further, lifted her head a little to the source of the blood.  
  
A man clad in armor lay there with eyes bulging out of his head. The pale white of his face showed that death had taken its toll. The reason of his death was clear. Two arrows protruded out from his chest.  
  
Holding back the strong urge to loose the contents of her stomach, Hitomi inched her way away from the dead soldier.  
  
As she kept sliding herself backwards, she did not notice something behind her. Soon enough she bumped into it and gave out a shriek.  
  
Hitomi jumped to her feet and stumbled away from whatever she had just hit. Her eyes went wide in disbelief as she took in the site before her.  
  
In all of Hitomi's shock, she managed to sputter out "No... th...this can't be real!"  
  
What lay before her were bodies of many soldiers strewn across the land. They were all bathed in blood, some with swords, spears, and arrows extending out of their mangled bodies. By the looks of them all, none seemed to be alive.  
  
Hitomi grew cold and felt extremely faint. The nausea was rising in her throat and she couldn't think straight. But then a noise in the distance caught her attention and took her eyes off the carnage.  
  
*******At the battle*******  
  
"Van! How are you holding up?" Allen shouted over the intercom.  
  
"There is too many of them!" Van replied while slicing through a Zaibach guymelef.  
  
They had been fighting for a while and the results were devastating. Corpses scattered the area and guymelefs of every sort lay broken and torn along the landscape.  
  
Allen, who was showing the signs of exhaustion, held his sword up just in time to deflect the crima-claws that were heading straight for him.  
  
Though Van's muscles ached, he fought with all the remaining strength he had in him. Not until he heard a cold menacing laugh did all his muscles tense up.  
  
The red guymelef stepped out of the smoke coming from the fires, and walked casually up to Escaflowne. It could mean only one thing. Dilandau was piloting the red armor.  
  
Dilandau then broke the silence. "I'm so glad you're not dead yet Van! Now I can finally kill you for what you have done to my face!"  
  
At that moment, Dilandau formed a blade and charged at Van. Regaining his senses in time, Van swiftly dodged the attack by dashing to the right. Escaflowne then stood on the battlefield in its fighting stance. Van was ready for anything that came his way.  
  
Dilandau also got into his fighting stance and made the first move. Bringing his blade down from above, Dilandau tried to push Van back to make him loose his balance. Van blocked the blow and held his footing. Lurching forward, Van pushed Dilandau off. They parried each other, while looking for an opening to attack.  
  
Two great swordsmen of Gaea were at it to the death. Ash from the fire was suffocating Van but Dilandau enjoyed the heat. His eyes and soul glowed as the fire did, burning with the passion of killing and of death.  
  
At that moment when Van thought the battle would never end, there was a vast explosion that went off right next to Dilandau. The force caused him to get thrusted sideways. This surprised both fighters and caught them off guard, but Van saw the opportunity to attack. While Dilandau went to steady himself, Van charged at him. Escaflowne slashed diagonally at Dilandau, but only managed to cut half way into the guymelef's arm. The liquid metal burst from the opening rendering the arm useless.  
  
"Damn you! You're gonna pay!" Dilandau shouted from his cockpit.  
  
Allen's voice then cracked over the fuzzy sounding comlink. "W...we ca...n't hold up! We've do...ne enou...gh! At... this rate, we w...ill die. Eve...ryone prepare... to leave! We have fo...ught ... to our extent." Allen gave the command and the crusade started to make its retreat.  
  
Van didn't waste any time and transformed Escaflowne into its dragon form. Quickly taking to the skies, he looked back at an extremely furious Dilandau who was trying to chase after him. Apparently Van had damaged Dilandau's guymelef enough that it could not fly. Relieved that his fight with Dilandau was over, Van looked to the Crusade and flew away from the destruction.  
  
Leaving the battleground behind, the Crusade flew away, but what they did not know was that someone dear to them was still there.  
  
******Back to Hitomi******  
  
The noise that woke Hitomi out of her thoughts was the Crusade taking to the skies. Hitomi looked in disbelief as her only way of getting back to Austuria flew away into the distance. In desperation, she started to run towards it. It was no use for no one would see her... they were too far away.  
  
Hitomi sank to her knees and felt like giving up all hope. She didn't know where to go or where the nearest city was. She really couldn't trust anyone for risk of getting herself hurt or worse... killed.  
  
Her heart pounded against her ribs and the pounding seemed to grow in strength. Not until Hitomi felt her knees start to pound did Hitomi wonder. At first, she thought she might have been cutting off her circulation to her legs, so she started to feel her heart beat in her legs. When the ground seemed to beat around her, Hitomi started to doubt it was her heart. She looked around her and heard hooves beating against the ground.  
  
Hitomi felt relieved that someone was there that could help her get back. Just as soon as she found the direction in which the sound was coming from, panic and terror replaced all hope. A flag of red and black could be seen waving in the dusty wind.  
  
As soldiers on horseback came into view, Hitomi's heart's pace quickened, but when a few surviving guymelefs removed their invincibility devices, her heart skipped a beat. Many looked beat up and damaged very badly. They all stood behind the remaining soldiers and horsemen waiting for orders.  
  
A voice in their direction could be heard. It was hard to make out what the person was saying but Hitomi heard something like 'Search for survivors'.  
  
Alarm hit Hitomi like an arrow. What if they found her? Would they kill her? Use her? What if they found out who she was?  
  
Slowly getting up, she looked for a way to escape. There was no place to really hide. The land was barren and void of a safe hiding spot. Keeping an eye on the rest of Zaibach's surviving army, Hitomi backed up while keeping low. Maybe she could gradually make her way somewhere without being noticed. Then she might stumble upon a good spot to stay till the army left.  
  
Hitomi's pendant then started to give off a slight glow. A vision flashed before her eyes. It was one she never had before, and it lasted only one second. It had to be a warning.  
  
"A red guymelef... why did I see that? It looked so familiar... didn't I see that guymelef the first day I was on Gaea? When Fanelia was burned down?!"  
  
But Hitomi's vision didn't give her any warning. Still staying low, Hitomi backed up still keeping her eyes on the approaching army.  
  
Hitomi's foot then hit something very hard. She stopped dead in her tracks and straightened up. Whirling around, Hitomi looked down to see what she hit but saw nothing. Dread consumed her as the pendant lying under her shirt glowed with a bright intensity like that of the sun.  
  
Then right before her eyes, a red guymelef appeared. That was what she bumped into! She didn't see it before because it was invincible. Now that it was right before her eyes, all Hitomi wanted to do was run. As if guessing her actions, the guymelef raised its undamaged arm and shot the metal claws at her.  
  
Raising her arms in front of her face, Hitomi closed her eyes and prayed that she wasn't going to die. She felt the metal brush against her side then felt it curl around her back. Surprised she didn't feel any pain, Hitomi lowered her arms and opened her eyes. What she saw scared her more. The claw had wrapped itself around her waist a few times and tightened. The end of one claw wrapped itself around her wrists and held them in place in front of her.  
  
It was no use trying to wiggle free. The red guymelef then lifted its arm making Hitomi lift higher into the air. Hitomi tried to remember who was in the guymelef, but she was lost in her own nervousness.  
  
Hitomi was then lifted up to the visor of the red guymelef as if being inspected.  
  
Hitomi managed to find her voice and spoke to the pilot. "Just who are you?! Let me go!"  
  
Hitomi didn't even need an answer as she suddenly heard the cockpit of her captor's guymelef fill with menacing laughter. She recognized it right away and she froze with terror.  
  
Dilandau then opened the cockpit's door and hung on the edge with his feet planted on the edge of the door. He had a look of revenge and disgust on his face as he studied Hitomi who was being held right in front of him by the crima claws. Then realization dawned upon his features.  
  
"You're the bitch from the Mystic Moon! Hahahahahaha!!!! Now I don't need to kill Van... I'll just have my revenge on you. You're the cause of all my pain!"  
  
Dilandau grabbed Hitomi by her hair with one hand, and forced her head backwards and twisted it to the side. He trailed his other hand down her cheek moving in the same direction of his scar.  
  
He let go of her hair, and brought the back of his gloved hand across her face. Sharp pain flashed through Hitomi's cheek and spread throughout her head. Hitomi was shocked through all the suddenness of everything.  
  
Then the galloping of a horse could be heard coming toward them. She turned her head to get a glimpse of whom it was. It was a Zaibach soldier that rode ahead of the group to give the orders to Dilandau.  
  
"Dilandau-sama, Folken-sama has sent levi-ships about 1000 feet from here to the east. We are to arrive as soon as possible to be taken back to the floating fortress." The soldier yelled up to Dilandau.  
  
"Fine..." The soldier then left and Dilandau started to talk more to himself than Hitomi, "Damn that Van! He damaged my guymelef just enough that I couldn't fly. If he hadn't done that, I could have chased after him and killed him... DAMN IT!"  
  
Dilandau's eyes raged with fire and stared at Hitomi. He smiled evilly at Hitomi, which in return sent chills up her spine.  
  
Jumping back into the guymelef, Dilandau turned to the east and headed towards the levi-ships with Hitomi still in his grasp. 


	3. New Life

Sorry I haven't updated in a while... been busy with Christmas and band... practicing. And I got Roller Coaster Tycoon 2!!! It's awesome and I can't stop playing it! Well no more excuses! Here is another chapter!  
  
Disclaimer: Escaflowne... don't own.  
  
Chapter 3: New Life  
  
Jumping back into the guymelef, Dilandau turned to the east and headed towards the levi-ships with Hitomi still in his grasp.  
  
After a long silence during the ride in the clutches of a maniac, the sight of smaller levi-ships came into view. They were floating a little above the ground with platforms extending onto the ground.  
  
Dilandau never changed his guymelefs pace and soon Hitomi could hear the distant sound of hooves beating the ground. The other men had caught up and were making their way to the ships.  
  
Hitomi could start to feel her legs going numb. Being held in the cold metal claw so tightly made the blood's circulation to her legs slow down. It wasn't long before everyone separated to different ships and filled in. Dilandau was the only person who had a guymelef to load on and took quite some time to squeeze in. Hitomi had to duck her head a few times for chance of hitting it on the top of the ship.  
  
Setting his guymelef against a wall, Dilandau had to do one more thing before jumping out.  
  
Feeling the tightness in her chest release, Hitomi realized what was happening. Before she had time to react, the ground came racing towards her. She landed hardly on her feet, and her knees gave way. On instinct, she loosened her body so she would not break any bones from further impact.  
  
She lied on the floor and felt her legs starting to get the feel back, but it wasn't the feeling she wanted to undergo. Pain crawled up her legs and her spine. Hitomi had taken all the force on her legs and now she was regretting she hadn't paid more attention to what Dilandau was doing.  
  
Hitomi heard voices around her and felt footsteps coming closer to her. Her vision blurred, and went from total blackness to flashes of light and color. Trying to lift herself off the ground, she felt as if all her strength had been drained. She pushed her arms against the ground, but she didn't hold herself up for long. Her arms gave way and her head hit the cold steel floor. Hitomi's mind went blank and fell into unconsciousness.  
  
~Back in Austuria~ The Crusade was just arriving back to the palace after the long, strenuous battle. Van was talking to Dryden about increasing defenses because you never knew when Zaibach was going to attack next. Dryden agreed with this and everyone started to walk back to the comfort of their rooms for a well- deserved sleep.  
  
Before Van went to his own room, he wanted to check on Hitomi. He needed to apologize for being so rude to her before they left. Things just weren't working out for him lately.  
  
The long hallways were silent, and an occasional servant would walk by giving a slight nod to Van before going to their own living quarters to turn in for the night. He arrived at the door he remembered to be Hitomi's room and stared at it. He was putting together what he was going to say to her. All the other times he had tried to tell her something, it had always come out wrong. He didn't want to upset her more.  
  
Figuring out the right words for his apology, he raised his knuckles to the door and knocked a few times. There was no answer and Van rapped on the hard wood a little louder. Still no answer.  
  
'Maybe she's sleeping...' thought Van.  
  
Pressing his ear up against the door, he listened for any sound that might indicate she was sleeping or was at least in her room. The only sound was of the gentle breeze blowing into the room.  
  
Van gripped the steel door handle in one hand and turned it. Giving a soft click, the door creaked open a little. He stuck his head in the opening and peered inside the dark room.  
  
He quietly whispered "Hitomi? Can I come in?"  
  
Walking fully into the room, Van looked around Hitomi's room which was dimly light by the Mystic Moon's glow. Already he could tell something was wrong. The door leading to her balcony was wide open and her bed looked as if it had never been slept on. The covers were all flat and neatly tucked in.  
  
Van looked around the room frantically and then ran out to the balcony. Images of her dead form sprawled across the ground filled his head. He grabbed the railing and threw his head over. Looking frantically from side to side, he didn't see any object on the moonlit grass. Van's heart calmed down a little, but he was still troubled to where Hitomi was. It was late at night so she shouldn't be wandering around the palace alone.  
  
Merle hadn't said anything to him about Hitomi since he came back. He would ask around to see if anyone had seen Hitomi. Turning back to the door that led to the balcony, Van stared at his reflection in the glass of the windows that covered the one wall.  
  
AN: (You know in the series, Hitomi's room has the wall facing outside made totally of windows? That's what I'm talking about. If I'm wrong tell me! That is what I recall in the series.)  
  
The Mystic Moon was above him dominantly shinning in the sky. He looked himself over in the reflection and saw an object near his feet glinting in the moonlight. Getting down on his knees, he found the object, and instantly recognized it as Hitomi's pendant.  
  
His heart lurched and he could feel his hands go cold.  
  
'Why is Hitomi's pendant here? Did she leave? Was she kidnapped?' These questions and more raced through his head as he tried to think of what might have happened to her.  
  
Jumping to his feet, Van raced out of Hitomi's room. As he ran through the halls, he kept asking every maid and soldier he encountered if they had seen Hitomi. Of course no one really knew who she was, but Van explained what she looked like with ease. He knew her every detail my memory.  
  
Still racing through the halls, Van turned a corner quickly, but as soon as he had turned, he collided into someone. He started to apologize and looked up to see whom he hit. Allen stood there with his hand extended out to Van. Helping him to his feet, Allen could see it in Van's eyes that something was wrong.  
  
Before Allen could even ask why Van was in such a rush, Van blurted "I can't find Hitomi!"  
  
Allen just stared at Van in disbelief, but regained his senses as Van started to run off again.  
  
'Maybe Dryden knows something of Hitomi's disappearance.' Van thought to himself.  
  
Van raced to the room he knew he would find Dryden. He was probably behind a stack of books now in the library. Reaching the room, Van didn't even bother to knock, and just burst into the room. He was panting hard and found Dryden at his desk, a book open in front of him and a single candle to his right.  
  
Dryden was surprised by this sudden interruption, and stared at Van wondering why he didn't knock. Van looked like he had seen a ghost. Pale and shaking, he strode over to Dryden.  
  
"Where is Hitomi?" Van shakily asked while still catching his breath.  
  
Equally confused, Dryden replied "I have no clue what you're talking about. She was in the castle before you left. She was here the whole time. Someone would have seen her leave."  
  
"I already asked everyone I came across in the castle. No one has seen her all day."  
  
"Maybe she went to the market for the day to take her mind off things." Dryden responded, trying to sound somewhat hopeful.  
  
"Then why would this be on her balcony?" With that said, Van threw the object that was clenched in his gloved fist onto Dryden's desk. "That is Hitomi's pendant. It is very precious to her, and she would never leave it behind or loose it."  
  
Dryden looked intently at the pendant and then directed his attention to Van. He was about to say something when a knock came to the door. The person on the other side didn't even wait for an answer to allow them to come in. A soldier came in and looked from Van to Dryden.  
  
"Dryden-sama, I'm sorry for the interruption, but there is a matter you need to attend to." The soldier stated it simply and sounded as if in a rush.  
  
"What is the matter about?" asked Dryden.  
  
"Many people in the city wish to know if there are demons in the castle."  
  
"Demons? Why the HELL would there be DEMONS in the castle!!??" a now furious Dryden retorted.  
  
The soldier now looked frightened but spit out the remaining words in his mouth. "Many townsfolk said they saw a blinding blue light coming from the castle. They say it shot down from the sky right above us. Many are afraid it is the work of demons, evil spirits, or some sort of dark magic."  
  
This caught Van's attention right away, and as soon as the soldier was done talking, Van could be heard whispering something to himself.  
  
"She went home... she went back to her own world... the Mystic Moon..."  
  
But Van didn't know how wrong he was.  
  
  
  
Sorry there weren't more parts with Dilandau and Hitomi here... but I promise in the next chapter its mainly going to focus on them! Please R&R! Any questions or comments are welcome! 


	4. Accept It

Thank you to all who reviewed! There is so many who reviewed I can't really thank all you separately! If I did... then I would be using time that I could be writing my fanfic with! So thank you everyone! Let me warn you... there won't be any DxH in the chapter... sorry but I'm building up on plot! So you will have to be patient! But I promise later it will be a lot of DxH! Sorry for any grammar and spelling mistakes I might not have caught while checking it over! Well anyways, enjoy chapter 4!  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne... sigh....  
  
"She went home... she went back to her own world... the Mystic Moon..."  
  
But Van didn't know how wrong he was.  
  
Chapter 4: Accept it  
  
If one were to look in the dungeon of Zaibach's Floating Fortress, one would think that Zaibach is a bunch of murderers. But just because most of the cells that are supposed to have prisoners in them are empty doesn't mean a thing. In fact, most of them have never been used. Some even have doors that are rusted shut.  
  
Though the dungeon appeared to be empty, a lone figure could be seen in the faint torchlight. Sprawled out on the cold metal floor, a young girl showed the signs of consciousness. Her eyes twitched and she scowled. Sluggishly Hitomi peered from under her eyelids to only find that it was the same sight as when her eyes were closed... only darkness. She didn't know how long she had been in the world of shadows, and slowly gained back her memory.  
  
Falling... weakness... going unconscious... it was all coming back to her. Red eyes... silver hair... Zaibach... the battle... death...  
  
With her head on the floor, Hitomi heard footsteps. They were coming closer and Hitomi started to feel the pain in her head grow. Her legs also felt sore from her landing when she was dropped.  
  
Hitomi could feel fear well up inside. What would they do with her? Would she ever see her family or Earth again? Was this the end?  
  
She felt like breaking down, but she kept telling herself that she had to keep it together. Whoever it was, she had to show that she wasn't afraid of them. That she was strong and wouldn't give up. Yes. She was going to look straight back at them without dread.  
  
The steps got closer, and Hitomi tried to sit up. She then realized her hands were tied together behind her back. Trying to push herself up using her elbows, Hitomi lost all strength. She felt so weak and sore, just as if she had sprint a marathon without slowing her pace.  
  
During her attempts to sit up, she didn't realize that the person that was walking closer to her was standing at the door of her cell. The light was so faint but she could make out that a candle was sitting on a tray.  
  
The person took out some keys and unlocked the door. Picking the tray back up, the individual walked toward Hitomi. She could now tell it was a man by the way he walked and watched as he set the tray next to her. The faint smell of food filled Hitomi's senses. She then realized how hungry she was. How she was going to eat baffled her. Maybe she could crawl over to it and eat it only with her mouth.  
  
Before she knew what was happening, the man walked behind her, and she heard the unsheathing of a blade. Feeling the binds on her hands come off, Hitomi felt her hands wash over in a prickly sensation.  
  
'The circulation in my hands must have been cut off from the binds.' Hitomi thought.  
  
The blood started to flow once again through her hands and the feeling came back. Bringing her hands in front of her, Hitomi once again tried to sit up. Still feeling faint and weak, Hitomi almost collapsed but then she felt that the man put his arm across her back and helped her sit up. Hitomi was just reaching for the food when an arm went under her knees.  
  
The guy was strong and lifted her effortlessly... but one thing didn't feel right. His arms almost felt... furry. Going over to the nearest wall, the individual set her down with her back resting against the wall. She looked up and the man was a beast-man!  
  
(AN: Got ya there didn't I? I'm so evil... ^_^; thought it was Dilandau? Think again!!)  
  
Hitomi looked surprised but remembered Merle.  
  
'I forgot there was beast-people on Gaea.' she thought to herself.  
  
She watched him get the food and place it next to her.  
  
He wasn't in any armor, and she guessed that he was just a servant. His black pants, which looked faded, were tucked into his boots, and he wore a t-shirt of an auburn color. His boots went about half way up his shin, and a coffee brown sash hung around his waist with a medium sized dagger attached to it.  
  
He kneeled down next to her and looked at her soothingly. "Please don't be scared. I won't hurt you. My name is Jajuka. Eat the food and gain back your strength. I'll be checking up on you in a while."  
  
With that he went back to the door and left, locking it behind him. Without a second thought, Hitomi went straight to the food. Her mouth was parched and body needed energy.  
  
By the time Hitomi was done eating, she felt alive again. She was aware that her body warmed up and she felt more awake. The food was giving her some much-needed energy.  
  
Once again, the footsteps of Jajuka could be heard coming down the staircase to the dungeons. This time he held nothing but a torch. He placed it into a holster against the wall near Hitomi's cell and started to look through the loop of keys that hung off his belt. The keys jingled as he found the correct one.  
  
Stepping inside, Jajuka walked over to Hitomi and picked up the tray.  
  
"Can you stand?" Jajuka asked as he stood up.  
  
Hitomi looked at him confused, but decided against asking why. She pushed her legs underneath her and used the wall for support. Slowly but steadily she found herself on her own two feet grasping the wall for support.  
  
"Good. I can see you have some more energy than before. Now if you will please follow me."  
  
Hitomi's look said everything and Jajuka assumed what she was going to ask. He quickly added "Folken-sama wishes to speak with you."  
  
(AN: Folken never decides to go to Van's side... he is always with Zaibach)  
  
Hitomi nodded her head and took a few unsteady steps forward. Jajuka watched her carefully to make sure she wasn't going to fall. They stepped out of the cell and Jajuka took the torch out of its holster. He started to walk forward but stopped when he didn't hear Hitomi behind him.  
  
"Can you walk alright?" He asked.  
  
Hitomi's voice came out in a whisper as though she were embarrassed. "Don't you need to tie my hands together or something so I won't try anything?"  
  
Jajuka looked at her sympathetically. "To tell you the truth, I don't think you would want to try to escape. First of all, the Viona is floating as high as the clouds. There is no way to escape unless you can fly a guymelef. The smaller levi-ships we use need professional pilots to fly them. So unless you can fly, you wouldn't make it. The other thing is that pretty much everyone here is a soldier or is capable of using a sword. Someone may just use it on you. So I don't think escaping is a good decision."  
  
With that said, they started to walk toward the floor above them. When they reached the top of the long spiral staircase, they walked into a hallway with windows along the one wall. The sunlight beamed in and lit up the hall. There was a barrel of water sitting by the door, and Jajuka threw the torch into it, making the fire extinguish instantly.  
  
Hitomi just followed Jajuka and kept her eyes straight ahead of her. Every time someone walked by them, she could feel eyes upon her... staring at her... examining her.  
  
They walked up two more staircases and went through many more corridors. The halls were beautifully decorated. Red carpet ran down the center of the floors and the granite walls were decorated with armor and paintings. Tapestries hung from the walls and ceiling, many with Zaibach's symbol upon them. Windows let sunlight in only along some walls while others were lit with candles and oil lamps. The walk continued for a few minutes until Jajuka stopped at a large redwood door. He raised his hand and knocked quite loudly.  
  
"You may enter." echoed a voice behind the doors.  
  
Jajuka pushed one door open and ushered Hitomi forward. It was a large room and had a huge circular window facing outside on the far wall. A fireplace stood to the right with chairs set around it. Folken stood by the window looking out into the distance.  
  
Hitomi looked around nervously. She didn't know what to do or say. Folken then said "Thank you Jajuka. You may wait outside. Hitomi... you may come in and sit down."  
  
She walked over to a cushioned armchair and sat down. Folken then walked over and took a chair opposite her. It was the first time Hitomi had ever seen Folken up close. She remembered seeing a glimpse of him when they invaded the Viona to save Van, but she didn't know who he was at the time and she had never spoken to him.  
  
"I believe this is the first time we have actually met. I'm guess you know I am Folken... Van's older brother." Hitomi nodded her head. "I am giving you a room of your own while you are here. I do not want to say you are our prisoner. By what I have heard, you were on the battlefield and Dilandau stumbled upon you. I haven't the faintest idea of why you were there.  
  
(AN: No, they didn't use the Fate Alteration Machine to send Hitomi there! Folken is telling the truth... he really doesn't know why Hitomi was on the battlefield. Remember what Folken said... "We don't know how to create the beam of light yet." That was in the episode when Hitomi does go back to Earth and everyone is wondering where she went and Van says "Home.")  
  
"Anyways... since you are not a prisoner here, you may walk anywhere in the Viona. You may eat anytime and as much as you wish. Make yourself comfortable and if you wish to talk to me, just ask a maid to bring you to where I am.  
  
"A place I don't recommend going is the hanger where all the guymelefs are. Big parts to repair the guymelefs are always being moved around in there and sometimes there is a lot of commotion. Just don't get yourself in the middle of it all. Do you have any questions?"  
  
"Why are you going through so much trouble for me? I thought you were going to sentence me to death." Hitomi questioned.  
  
Folken gave a slight chuckle. "We don't have a reason to kill you. I hate senseless slaughter, and maybe later you will be useful to us."  
  
He stood up from his chair and Hitomi followed suit. Folken then walked to the door and motioned Hitomi to come forward. Opening the large door, Jajuka stepped into view.  
  
"Take Hitomi to her chambers." He told Jajuka. "And Hitomi... I don't think those clothes will last you. I'll have a maid sent to get your measurements for some new clothes."  
  
Hitomi gave Folken a slight smile in thanks and walked out the door. 'So I'm not going to die after all.' She then followed Jajuka through some more passageways and down the staircase they had gone up before. They stopped at the very end of a poorly lit hall in front of a large brown door.  
  
"This will be your room from now on." Jajuka told her. "I have to leave you now, but feel free to ask for anything. I hope you find your room to be of your liking."  
  
Jajuka then opened the door and let Hitomi in. Once she was fully in, Jajuka closed the door behind her. Hitomi could hear him walking all the way down the hall, leaving her alone.  
  
A fire stood ablaze in its hearth directly in front of Hitomi. To her right was an armoire, and across from the fire sat a couch with cream-colored fabric. A little distance behind the couch was a large four-post bed. Midnight blue silk hung across the whole top of the bed and ran down the posts. The silk was thin and could be untied from the posts to drape around the entire perimeter of the bed, but only to act as a screen that could be seen through.  
  
The floor was polished dark wood and reflected the fire's glow throughout the room, and the walls were of dark, rough-looking stone. The light from the fire made the room glow but Gaea's two moons could be seen very clearly from the giant window on the far side of the room.  
  
Hitomi felt awed by it all. 'This is my room? It's all so beautiful.'  
  
She walked over to the bed and sat down. Kicking off her shoes, she swung her feet onto the silky covers and soft mattress, falling the rest of the way onto the pillows that lay at that head of the bed.  
  
For a while Hitomi just lay there... thinking. For all she knew, there was no possible way for her to escape. The only way she could think of is if Van or the Crusade rescued her. But then the fortress had a cloaking device. She did teach Van how to douse with his mind. No... he wouldn't be able to do it. It had taken Hitomi almost all day to find Van when he was taken by Zaibach. No way anyone could find it.  
  
Then something came to mind. Did anyone know she had been taken by Zaibach? Everyone could be thinking that she ran away or even went back to Earth. With every thought, the hopes of ever escaping from Zaibach slowly diminished.  
  
The whole time she was there, she never thought about her previous life. Now she had time to think about it, and now thought about her friends, her family, and her home. Would she ever see anything that she once loved again? She felt her heart break with every moment and felt tears fall for each memory. Destiny had a cruel way of changing your life completely.  
  
Drifting off into a dreamless sleep, Hitomi was suddenly woken up by a knock on the door. She looked down at her pillow and found that there was a dry spot where her tears were shed. She got off her bed and went to the door, opened it a crack, and looked out. Seeing that it was one of the maids, she let her in.  
  
She walked in very slowly and kept her head down. Her hair, a natural red color, was clean and pulled back into a neat bun. She wore a black dress that nearly covered all of her skin except for her face and hands. The end of its sleeves flared out like a bell and the neckline only drooped down far enough to see her collarbone. She wore a chain belt of copper that settled around her hips and the dress ended at her ankles. Her shoes looked like black ballet shoes but more like slippers.  
  
"I have come to take your measurements for your clothing Miss Hitomi." the young girl inquired as she lifted the basket she was holding to show Hitomi her supplies.  
  
She looked no older than Hitomi herself but Hitomi wished to ask the girl no questions. They might just bring back bad memories to the girl and Hitomi didn't want to upset her.  
  
"Please just call me Hitomi. Since you already know my name, what is yours?"  
  
The girl looked like she was getting less shy and looked Hitomi straight in the eye. Autumn gold and light lime green swirled together in the deep abyss of her eyes.  
  
"My name is Masumi." she replied.  
  
Hitomi nodded her head and Masumi took out a few items in her bag. Hitomi walked over to a more open space in her room where Masumi followed. She measured Hitomi in every which way and scribbled it down on a piece of parchment. It didn't take long before she was done and started to put the things back into the small basket.  
  
"I'll give these measurements to the seamstress. Do you wish for her to make you anything specific?" Masumi said while standing up.  
  
Hitomi didn't want to be a bother so she just said "A few pairs of pants, and shirts should be fine. Thank you."  
  
Masumi gave a slight curtsy and left, closing the door softly behind her. Hitomi now looked out her window to the outside world and noticed just how late it was getting. The sun could only been seen on the horizon, its light fading and the two moons taking over to set an eerie glow on the planet. The fire was now only glowing from the dying embers.  
  
Hitomi yawned and felt her eyes starting to droop. Her body called for sleep and she obeyed. She walked over to her bed and untied all the thin silk fabric from each post, letting it fall around the bed. Parting the screen on one side, she climbed in, pulled the covers down from under her mass of pillows, and slipped into their comfort.  
  
Hitomi lay awake for some time and put together all that happened. Deciding on what she would do with her life her at Zaibach, she came to a conclusion that it wouldn't be worth killing herself over. She could learn a lot here. Maybe if she won their confidence, she could learn how to sword fight and become better than Van or even Allen. Then maybe she could even pilot a guymelef. If she could do that, there was a chance for her escape.  
  
She smiled to herself and decided to just live. If she dwelled on the past too much and felt horrible every day of being in the Viona, she would go into a depression and might try to kill herself. If there was a way out, she would find it... even if it took years...  
  
  
  
IMPORTANT: If anyone wants me to e-mail them when I update please just go ahead and ask!!! If you made your profile not show your e-mail when looked at, just tell it to me. Otherwise in the review just say you want an e-mail and I'll send you one once I update this fic with another chapter! I'll do this till the end of the story!  
  
Warning... I may not be able to update a lot now... finals are coming up, I'm in a musical and we have practices starting 3 times a week and they get longer. I'll use a lot of my free time to write this... but I can't promise quick chapters... sorry! Please R&R! 


	5. Not What I Thought

IT'S MY BIRTHDAY!!!! YEAH!!!! I'M FINALLY 16!!!! (That means I expect a lot of reviews!!!)  
  
Wow... thank you all who read and reviewed!!!!! It really keeps me going... well finals are now over... and it's the start of a new semester. Hooray! But then again... I'm in a musical at school and practices will be longer every day... but I will still find time to write! Hey there is always staying up really late on weekends... well without further ado! I present to you, Chapter 5... where Dilandau and Hitomi will finally meet! Promise!  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne or anything affiliated with it.  
  
She smiled to herself and decided to just live. If she dwelled on the past too much and felt horrible every day of being in the Vione, she would go into a depression and might try to kill herself. If there was a way out, she would find it... even if it took years...  
  
Chapter 5: Not What I Thought  
  
Beaming brightly and slowly rising, the sun's rays crept slowly into Hitomi's room. The light reached her eyes and Hitomi squinted her eyes. She flipped over and opened her eyes fully to look at her surroundings. It was all the same as what they were last night.  
  
"I guess it really wasn't a dream." Hitomi quietly told herself.  
  
Hitomi looked around once more and pulled back the curtain around her bed, securing the ends to the posts. She kicked her feet off the bed and onto the cold floor, which hit her feet like ice water. Hitomi had no clue what she would do now. She could go anywhere in the Vione, but was unsure of how people would react to her. Would they look at her with hate, fear, or hostility? Or would they welcome her as one of their own?  
  
One thing was for sure. She didn't look too appealing. Her hair was sticking out everywhere and looked considerably dirty. Her school uniform was torn in a few spots and ripped along the hem of her sleeve. Scratched and bruises ran along her arms and legs almost hidden by dirt and mud. She was significantly sore also. Around her waist was slightly bruised and sore from being held by the crima-claw for so long and her back ached from being on the dungeons hard floor.  
  
The pain grew as she started to stand, but as Hitomi's muscles warmed up, the pain receded. In the corner of her eye, Hitomi could see something sitting on her couch and walked over to it. New clothing, all folded and stacked neatly, sat in two piles for her.  
  
She sat down next to the piles and started to look at each item separately. She received three sleeveless shirts, two short-sleeved shirts, four long sleeved shirts, four pairs of pants, which were all black, and a long black sleek dress with a slit going down the right side and almost ending below her hip. The sleeves would hang off her shoulders and the neckline was slightly curved to be just a little lower than her collarbone. She also found some undergarments at the bottom of the pile. Everything was simple and each a different dark color.  
  
'Well at least nothing is pink.' she mentally joked.  
  
Hitomi stood up and looked around her room once more. To the right of her bed stood a door that she hadn't taken notice of before. She walked over to it and slowly turned the handle. Inside was a bathroom. At her far left, a pool of steaming water lay at ground level. Some shelves hung on the walls, which held all different types of bathing necessities. To the far right was a long counter with a sink and in the corner was a toilet.  
  
'Wow... they have more modern technology here than I thought. Running water, and I hope that toilet has a plumbing system.' said Hitomi.  
  
Hitomi walked over to the water, knelt down, and grazed her hand over the surface. The water was warm and very inviting. She undressed and folded all of her clothing into a stack, placing it near the door. She would never get rid of her clothing from home, and decided on putting it in a safe place in her room so no one could find them and throw them out.  
  
She sat down at the waters edge and plunged her feet into the steamy water. A rush of heat raced up her legs and tingled her feet. Hitomi started to sink down a little more into the water when her feet hit a solid surface.  
  
'It can't be that shallow can it?' she questioned herself.  
  
Searching around with her feet, Hitomi felt the hard surface end after she moved her feet a few feet from the edge. She jumped the rest of the way in and felt her body relax. Letting the heat wash over her, she sat on the bench that ran along the edge of the bathing pool and rested her head back. It reminded her of a hot tub back on Earth.  
  
The water felt like it was dissolving all of her pains and fears away. Hitomi rubbed all the dirt off and washed her hair with what she thought to be shampoo. She ducked her head into the water to rinse her hair and reluctantly got out of her warm bathing pool. She dried herself off with one of the towels that sat on the shelves and wrapped it around her body. She picked up her old clothing and walked into her main bedroom.  
  
Hitomi picked a dark blue, short sleeve shirt that had a slight V-neck to it. One pair of pants was also selected. Dressing in her newly made clothing, Hitomi was surprised at how well everything fit her and looked herself over. From the corner of her eye, she saw a glint of black at the end of her bed. There, almost hidden by her enormous bed, stood a pair of boots.  
  
They were made of black leather and glinted in the sunlight. She sat on the edge of her bed and brought one up to her eyes for closer inspection. There was a thick heel of about a half an inch and brightly polished silver buckles ran up one side of the boot. She put one shoe on and found it to be a little snug. She tucked her pants into the shoe and latched the two buckles that ran down the side. They were so high, they nearly reached Hitomi's knee.  
  
Reaching over to the end of her bed, she grabbed the other boot and put it on. Hitomi got up, walked around, felt if her toes were hitting the end of the shoe, and felt if anything was rubbing. She felt just like a kid when trying on and buying new shoes.  
  
Her hair was still wet, so Hitomi took her towel from where it lay and vigorously rubbed her hair. Once satisfied that her hair was as dry as she could get it, Hitomi looked into a mirror that stood next to her armoire. Standing in every which way was her hair.  
  
Hoping to find something to brush her hair with, Hitomi headed back into the bathroom and searched the shelves for a brush. Soon enough, she caught site of a comb and took it. Hitomi walked over to the sink where a mirror hung directly in front of her. She ran the comb through her hair a few times until all the knots were out and all the hair was flat against her head.  
  
Her reflection gazed straight back at her with a look of confusion and childish fear. She had to go out of her room someday or another... today might as well be the day. Hitomi, making her decision, wiped away the fear and set her look to one of determination. This time her reflection glared back into her emerald eyes.  
  
The hall that extended down to Hitomi's room was quite empty and silent. Opening her door, Hitomi peered outside and fully stepped out, closing the heavy door behind her. The sounds her boots made were softened by the carpet that ran down the length of the corridor. Hitomi felt unsure of her surroundings and constantly looked around her... she didn't want to be surprised by anything.  
  
After walking down the whole length of the hall, there was a staircase to her right leading the floor above and straight in front of her was another staircase that led to the level below.  
  
'Now which way should I go?' she thought to herself. 'There might just be some living quarters upstairs...'  
  
Hitomi was now getting frustrated with herself. 'Why is it so hard to pick which way!'  
  
Pushing back all further thoughts she headed straight and started to go downstairs. Her feet hitting the stone stairs echoed softly down the circular staircase. It wasn't long before she found herself in another corridor. She started walking and found that many of the maids that strolled by her, gave her questioning and accusing glares.  
  
'Do I really look that weird?' Hitomi asked herself.  
  
Walking a bit further, she turned a corner and continued on her journey. A faint sound reached her ears, but she was unsure of exactly what it was. Then the sounds of battle reached her.  
  
'What's going on? Is someone fighting? Did Van find me?!' So many thoughts raced through her head as she headed in the direction of the sound. Her feet pounded on the ground and her heart beat in excitement. Yes! The sound of swords clashing against one another could clearly be heard. She raced to the end of the hall and without a second thought burst through the door, which the sounds of battle could be heard.  
  
Her hopes immediately dropped like a lead balloon as she took in the site before her. There was no battle... it was... soldiers... there were training with one another. Everyone had stopped what they were doing instantly once they saw her come bursting in.  
  
Hitomi felt the nervousness build up inside rapidly. Everyone was now looking at her and a sense of familiarity started to come to her. She had seen their armor before... but from where? Who where these kids? They looked all to be about her age... but where had she seen them?  
  
Battle... they were in battle... Van fought against them before.  
  
'They're... they're... the Drag... Dragonslayers!' but she realized this too late.  
  
Suddenly each of their faces lit up with recognition. "She's the one Dilandau-sama brought back from battle!" one of the soldiers yelled out to the rest.  
  
"I thought she was in the dungeons! I wonder... did she escape?" another questioned to his comrades.  
  
'This isn't good' Hitomi told her body to run for the door and escape, but as she turned around to face the door, she saw that a soldier stood right in front of it, blocking her escape. 'Damn it! Now what am I going to do?'  
  
All the Dragonslayers were circling around her, eyeing her like prey. She couldn't be cornered... she had trick them somehow so the door would be clear. No one stood to her right, so she made a mad dash in that direction. She then noticed how big the room was. There were racks with weapons of all sorts all around the room and the center was entirely open for training.  
  
Hitomi ran to one of the racks and picked up a pole just in time to block a blow coming right for her head. The sword cut almost half way through the pole and the force that the blond haired soldier put on it made it start to crack. She was being pushed back and the boy had the upper hand. His strength was overwhelming and Hitomi couldn't hold him off for much longer. Quickly she flung herself to the right and let go of the pole. This caught the young soldier off guard and he stumbled forward.  
  
Frantically looking around, Hitomi took her chance at his surprise and started to sprint towards the door. Another slayer jumped in front of Hitomi to block her path, but with quick thinking, Hitomi flung herself to the floor and slid right in-between the boy's legs.  
  
Pushing herself back up from the floor, she pushed herself to run her fastest. Her escape was right there in front of her and she could nearly feel triumph. Just as her hand reached out to push the door open, she felt someone grab her from behind and push her down.  
  
The ground raced towards Hitomi as she landed hard with another heavy weight on her back. The person got off of Hitomi and roughly grabbed the back of her shirt. She struggled to get out of his grasp until two other slayers came, each grabbing one of her arms. They pulled her forcefully to her feet and started to drag her to the center of the training room.  
  
The two Dragonslayers threw Hitomi to the floor and everyone else made a circle around her. She started to panic as one of them drew their sword and spoke to her. "Don't think we don't know who you are... Dilandau-sama refers to you as the 'Bitch from the Mystic Moon'. You're the one who gave him that scar. Am I right?"  
  
Hitomi did not answer his question. She was too petrified to mutter anything. 'Is this the end? Am I truly going to die?'  
  
He saw the look of terror on her face and smirked. "Now you will pay for what you have done!"  
  
Everyone around her watched in anticipation as he raised his sword above his head, ready to deliver the final blow. She put her arms in front of her face on impulse and firmly shut her eyes. Without warning, a figure burst into the crowd, unsheathed their sword, and blocked the soldier's sword that was coming down onto Hitomi.  
  
She didn't feel any pain, but only heard a loud clang of steel and a few of the boys gasp in surprise, but other than that, nothing. All was silent. Cautiously, Hitomi opened her eyes to find another boy, dressed in the same armor, standing right in front of her. His back was facing her, but she instantly knew who it was from his white hair.  
  
Dilandau, with his sword drawn, had stopped the swing of the sword that would have taken her life. The other Dragonslayer stood there with a look of utmost shock and terror etched onto his features. Slowly he moved his sword from where it had hit Dilandau's and fell on one knee. His eyes fell to the floor as he awaited his punishment.  
  
Dilandau sheathed his sword and glared at the rest of the Dragonslayers. He then turned and looked down at Hitomi. Kneeling down next to her, Dilandau looked her over. Once he was satisfied she wasn't hurt, he stood and held his hand out for her. She looked at his hand... then at him. She then took his hand and Dilandau helped her up.  
  
Once Hitomi was steady, Dilandau turned back around to the Dragonslayer kneeling before him. With one swift motion, Dilandau slapped Miguel, who crumpled to the floor from the force.  
  
Hitomi stared at Miguel then looked at Dilandau. She found he was also staring at her.  
  
Dilandau then spoke, but directed his talk to his Dragonslayers, who were now all lined up in formation standing before him. "I just spoke with Folken-sama. He has informed me that Hitomi, whom you just tried to kill, is a guest here on the Vione. He threatened that if anyone hurts her, or kills her, they will have to deal with him."  
  
He glared at each one of his slayers then looked back at Hitomi. She could tell that Dilandau wanted to kill her right there. A fire was burning in his eyes for revenge... but they were burning for a revenge he couldn't have.  
  
"Follow me." Dilandau commanded Hitomi. She then headed out the door, walking directly behind the boy that wanted to kill her, but had saved her instead. 


	6. Confusing Questions

I'm so sorry I haven't updated in awhile!! I have had no free time what so ever for the past week, and I won't be having much more free time soon. I apologize for the shortness of the upcoming chapters, but once my life stops getting so hectic, then I can really write long chapters. I'm glad so many people like my fanfiction! And if you like fanfictions with Dilandau and another kick-ass made-up character, I recommend you read 'Always With You' by Darkgoddess. AND A HUGE THANK YOU TO ALL OF MY WONDERFUL FANS THAT REVIEWED!!! ARIGATO-GOZIMASU!!!  
  
Disclaimer: I no own Escaflowne or Soul Calibur.  
  
AN: To get one thing straight.... I didn't purposely make the Dragonslayers look weak... they just underestimated Hitomi and 'took it easy on her'. But since they really didn't try at catching her and thought of it as 'a game' she got away... but as you see in the end, they did catch her and were about to kill her. Hope that makes everything clear now!  
  
P.S. I feel stupid for asking but will someone please tell me what OOC means??  
  
He glared at each one of his slayers then looked back at Hitomi. She could tell that Dilandau wanted to kill her right there. A fire was burning in his eyes for revenge... but they were burning for a revenge he couldn't have.  
  
"Follow me." Dilandau commanded Hitomi. She then headed out the door, walking directly behind the boy that wanted to kill her, but had saved her instead.  
  
Chapter 6: Confusing Questions  
  
Silently walking down the hall, Hitomi followed Dilandau. They hadn't walked for more than a minute when Dilandau turned and stopped in front a door similar to the Dragonslayers' training room door. Hitomi was careful not to get in Dilandau's way as he opened the door.  
  
Hitomi felt nervous as she walked into the room, but as her eyes adjusted to the bright light beaming into the room from the line of windows, she felt realization dawn on her.  
  
The room was not as big as the other training room but it still had weapons hanging on racks that ran along the walls. From swords, to rods, to shields, and lances, many a different types of weapons along with their fighting styles could be seen throughout the room. She realized that she was going to learn to fight.  
  
Without hesitation, Hitomi started to walk around the room and look at all the weapons there was to offer. She was fascinated by all the shapes, sizes, and designs that made up each weapon. Instead of admiring everything, she focused on a weapon that would be well suited for her.  
  
Broadswords would be too heavy, and she didn't think she would have the grace and force to handle a katana. As she walked a little further, a red wooden rod caught her eye. It wasn't just a rod though. On one end of it, a wide blade of dull steel stuck out of the top. It was straight on one edge but the other was curved. Both sides looked like they were sharp but after much use, it looked not sharp at all. Since it was a weapon to train with, it was a good thing that the blade was dull.  
  
AN: (Check out this website for a picture of the weapon. it's actually Sueng Mina from Soul Calibur. I love her weapon so much! )  
  
It was just a practice weapon, and showed much use and wear, but Hitomi immediately took a liking to it. She put her hands around the rod and lifted it off the rack. It was very top heavy from the steel blade, and she nearly dropped it from the unevenness in weight. But as not to make a fool of herself, she kept a firm grip on it and turned around to find that Dilandau was only a few feet away from her.  
  
He looked at the determination on her face and looked at her weapon of choice.  
  
'She choose well.' Dilandau thought to himself.  
  
"I'm guessing you already know that I'm going to train you how to fight." Dilandau inquired.  
  
Hitomi nodded her head. She would learn to defend herself and then she would never need to rely on Van or Allen to save her. No one else would ever get hurt on her account. She would make sure of that.  
  
Dilandau unattached his sword and set it on the ground near all the other weapons. He walked over to where Hitomi had gotten her rod and picked up one of his own. Walking to the center of the room, he faced Hitomi who was still wrongly holding her rod.  
  
Dilandau started, "You're holding it wrong. First, grip the pole with your left hand near the blade and your right hand near your leg." He showed her with his weapon and Hitomi was holding it correctly now.  
  
"You're holding it too tight. Loosen your grip... when using this weapon, you cannot be so tense. Your movements need to be free and flowing... tension will only give you more weaknesses. Now, I want you to charge at me." Dilandau added.  
  
Hitomi looked at him, unsure if she had heard him right. He assured her with a nod and Hitomi took in a deep breath. She raced forward and swung the rod toward his right side. Easily blocking it, Dilandau started to talk again.  
  
"Make sure you don't exert yourself in only a few moves. Look for an opening when you attack. Your opponent might be concentrating on getting an advantage over you and leave themselves unguarded. When that happens, take the advantage and attack. Make sure you are always on your guard. Now try and block."  
  
Dilandau jumped backwards pulling his rod away from Hitomi's. He didn't want to hit her full force so he just swung his rod toward her left side near her abdomen. She saw this coming and blocked the attack. She decided to go a little further and push him away. Putting her weight into it, she pushed against Dilandau's pole and swung down at his legs. Being an experienced fighter, he jumped up and Hitomi's rod swished below his feet.  
  
Dilandau could tell she wanted to fight for real. That was the only way to gain experience. Learning things move by move would be just acting. It would not prepare her for real life battle.  
  
Hitomi was learning to use her weapon fast, but she was getting tired quickly. The weight of the blade was tiring her muscles and she started to breath hard. She threw her pole behind her head and brought it down upon Dilandau who raised his rod above and across his head. Her hit was hard and Dilandau was glad that she wasn't weak.  
  
He then pushed forward to throw her off balance, but she didn't expect this and dropped her rod as she started to fall backwards. Unexpectedly, Dilandau dropped his own pole and raced forward. Without a second thought, he threw his arms forward. One wrapped behind her shoulders and the other around her lower back. Hitomi's eyes were closed shut, ready to impact the floor, but when she felt sturdy arms envelop her, she was shocked.  
  
Flashing her eyes open, she found herself staring at two red orbs that held so much more depth than what the outer shell exposed. Dilandau also seemed to be lost in another world. A green abyss had consumed him... it spread a warmth around him... he had never felt like that before... feeling so calm and at peace. But his thoughts were interrupted.  
  
Hitomi gained back her senses and just realized how close she was to Dilandau. "Dilandau?" she spoke softly.  
  
This woke him up immediately and he realized they were staring at each other. His cheeks seemed to go a little pink with embarrassment, but he hid it by quickly lifting Hitomi back up so she could stand and hastily turned away.  
  
Walking back over to where he dropped his rod, he picked it up and walked back over to the rack where he got it. Dilandau secured it in the hooks and strode to where his sword lay. Hitomi felt just as uncomfortable as him and tried to think of anything to say to break the edgy silence.  
  
Dilandau jumped ahead of her and broke the stillness in the room. "I need to check on my Dragonslayers now. You can come here and practice any time you want. You will get stronger over time and be able to handle your weapon for a longer period of time. Work on different attacks and techniques. If you want some practice with a person, come find where I am training with the Dragonslayers."  
  
Hitomi just stood there. How did he turn from so hostile towards her, to so nice? He was treating her with respect. And when she looked into his eyes... it was as if they weren't even his. The first time she had ever looked into those eyes, they were full of hatred and held a fiery passion for bloodshed. But... when he had caught her... they seemed so full of caring and seemed to be lost in the depths of her soul.  
  
"Tha... thank you... Dilandau..." Hitomi got out barely above a whisper.  
  
Dilandau stopped at the doorway and replied hesitantly, "Don't thank me... thank Folken. He was the one that ordered that no one shall harm you. I was following orders." And with that Dilandau stepped out into the hallway and shut the door behind him.  
  
He stood there for a few minutes and thought over what he had just said. A voice in the back of his head kept saying he was lying to himself. He wasn't just following orders. He remembered he heard a ruckus in the training room and hurried to see why his Dragonslayers were not doing what they were ordered to do. Folken had just talked to him and told him of Hitomi. Dilandau remembered Hitomi very well and felt rage build in his head. She was the reason he lost most of their battles against Van and the reason he got the scar on his cheek. After Folken mentioned Hitomi would be staying there for a while, he ordered that Dilandau and no one else would kill or harm her.  
  
With that said, Dilandau could say nothing to defy Folken's orders. If any harm did come to Hitomi, Dilandau would have to face the consequences. The thing was... Dilandau doubted that Folken would do anything to him. Being their top general and head of the Dragonslayers, Dilandau was very important... more than Folken wanted to admit.  
  
So why did Dilandau save the one girl that he wanted to kill? WAS he just following Folken's orders? Or did his body get a mind of it's own?  
  
When he saw her crumpled on the floor, seeing the fear that over came her because of the realization that she was going to loose her life, he felt something... something he had never felt before... that was when he rushed in and saved her from the sword that would have ended her life. When Dilandau unsheathed his sword, he did not think of what would happen to himself if he didn't save Hitomi's life... but he reacted on his own will. He wasted no time and did not think twice about saving her... had he acted upon his feelings? If he did... he didn't understand them.  
  
He felt so confused by all the questions in his mind and just wanted to understand what he was going through. Shaking his head from side to side, he cleared his head and decided to do some training to take his thoughts off of Hitomi.  
  
Hitomi... now it seemed that he didn't have the feeling to get his revenge on her anymore. After looking into her eyes... all the hatred seemed to dissolve away. 


	7. Training

Yeah!! The musical I was in is over now! I have time to write this fanfiction for all my wonderful fans! Aren't you all so happy? Sorry for not updating sooner for I've been having a lot of writers block... forgive me! Also I'm sorry for the shortness of the chapter.  
  
Opps! The last chapter... I said there was a link to see Hitomi's weapon... but for some reason it didn't appear. I'll try and figure it out. If you want you can search for yourself for some pictures. It's Sueng Mina from Soul Calibur. Anyways thanks again for all the wonderful reviews! And Gryphon Gal, thanks so much for telling me that the link wasn't there... I didn't catch that when looking it over. And don't worry... I won't have Dilandau and Hitomi hit it off in a few chapters. I have a few surprises in store. _ Just read and find out! And thank you reviewers!!! (I'll recognize you all in the very last chapter! Think of it as 'the credits'.)  
  
AN about the weapon: If some of you still don't understand Hitomi's weapon... think of a hockey stick... the blade on the end of the hockey stick is sticking straight up instead of being curved. It is held so the blade is near your head. The main stick part has a height that goes to your shoulders. The blade rises above your head. The one side of the blade is curved outwards and the other side of the blade is flat. Imagine the capital letter D but more stretched out. I said it was dull because it was a practice weapon. Hope everyone understands and has a better picture of what her weapon looks like. Dilandau also was using the same thing.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne x infinity!!!!  
  
Hitomi... now it seemed that he didn't have the feeling to get his revenge on her anymore. After looking into her eyes... all the hatred seemed to dissolve away.  
  
Chapter 7: Training  
  
Hitomi stood there stunned. What had just happened? Dilandau actually seemed normal for a minute. But it only lasted a moment, for the fire of revenge swept his eyes once contact was broken. Hitomi shook all current thoughts from her head and bent down to pick up her rod. She held it in front of her, staring at it.  
  
'You're not going to get any better just staring at your weapon!' she mentally scolded herself.  
  
Nodding her head she resumed to train but this time by herself. For now she wouldn't work on anything but blocks and simple attacks. When her fighting style improved, the more complicated moves could be learned.  
  
Standing in the center of the room, she focused straight ahead at an invincible enemy. Hitomi pictured herself thrusting the blade end of her pole through the air. Unconsciously her inner eye placed a soldier at the end of her blade. Their eyes bulged out and blood gushed from the wound in their stomach. Hitomi stood there in shock. Her breathing was becoming more difficult and she struggled to regain her composure. Blinking a few times, Hitomi cleared her thoughts and glanced forward. There was no one there... just the air around her.  
  
'Why did I see that?' Hitomi thought to herself.  
  
Her mind answered it for her. 'You are learning to fight... aren't you? Well... what do fighters do? They kill... they cause pain and suffering...'  
  
'No! I'm not learning how to fight just to kill someone! I just don't want to rely on others to protect me! I have to take care of myself' Hitomi argued back.  
  
'But sometimes in order to protect yourself, you must kill. It is either their life or yours.'  
  
Hitomi's struggle in her mind had ended abruptly once those words were said. They echoed in her mind over and over... 'It is either their life or yours'...  
  
It was true... the whole point of fighting is to survive. If taking away someone else's life was what it came down to... then it had to be done.  
  
'But I don't want blood to stain my hands!' Hitomi tried to reason with her inner thoughts.  
  
'Do you want the ones you love to die because of you?!' her mind contradicted.  
  
'No... I don't want anyone to die on my behalf! It almost happened twice... I can't let that happen ever again.'  
  
'Then you will have no choice then but to kill! It will come some day. You might as well accept it. To survive in this world, you must become one of the strong. Being weak will only get you or the ones you care about killed.'  
  
Hitomi knew those thoughts were all correct. So in order for her to stay alive and hopefully be able to return home some day, she had to stay strong, and become a fighter of great potential.  
  
She took in a deep breath and positioned herself in a good fighting stance. Her feet were spread apart with knees slightly bent. Her weapon being held in both hands, each positioned the way Dilandau had instructed her to.  
  
Hitomi sprinted forward and swung her rod towards the right. She lifted it above her head and spun it like a helicopter a few times before lowering it back down to her side. She made up attacks and carried out each one trying to use as swift movements as possible. She felt her muscles becoming wearier by the minute and sweat was rapidly forming along her brow.  
  
At last her muscles gave out and she sank to the floor. She had lost track of time and when she looked out the windows, the sun looked well past noon.  
  
"I haven't pushed myself that hard in a while." she told herself.  
  
The weapon was certainly heavy and seemed to get heavier as she used it. Lazily, Hitomi lifted herself to her feet and leaned against her rod for support. She ran a hand through her hair and blew a stray piece away from where it had fallen against her forehead.  
  
The rod was placed back on its rack and Hitomi made her way to the door. She pulled open the door and closed it behind her. Curiously she looked around but nothing looked familiar to her.  
  
Hitomi mentally scolded herself. 'Great! Just great... in all the rush going to the sound of the 'battle', I forgot to remember where I came from.'  
  
Just as Hitomi was going to give in to wandering, a familiar face started to walk down the hall.  
  
"Wait! Masumi right?" Hitomi said as she ran up to the maid girl.  
  
"Yes?" She started to turn from where she was walking when she suddenly recognized who was talking to her. "Oh! Miss Hitomi! Is there anything I can do for you?"  
  
"Actually yes. I'm a little lost. And please... can you just call me Hitomi?"  
  
"Of course. Do you wish to go back to your room or would you like to see more of the Vione?"  
  
"Well it would be nice to actually see the rest of this place... seeing I might as well be a little more familiar with my surroundings. I don't want to look like a little lost puppy all the time."  
  
Masumi gave a slight laugh at Hitomi's comment, and led the way for their journey around the Vione.  
Thanks for reading! I'll try and update sooner.... don't forget to review!! 


	8. A New Friend

Guess what? I got my driver's license! I can drive! Whoopy! Ok... enough about me. I tried to update as soon as possible... so here you are! Chapter 8!  
  
To yukari: Sailor suits? Are you crazy? I'm not turning this into a Sailor Moon/Escaflowne crossover! Lol.... Thanks for the idea though...  
  
Disclaimer: What? Are you kidding? I don't own Escaflowne! What a joke...  
  
"Well it would be nice to actually see the rest of this place... seeing I might as well be a little more familiar with my surroundings. I don't want to look like a little lost puppy all the time."  
  
Masumi gave a slight laugh at Hitomi's comment, and led the way for their journey around the Vione.  
  
Chapter 8: A New Friend  
  
"All the lower corridors are just storage areas and prison cells. We really don't use them. People are kept in there only if they are caught as a spy or if someone turns traitor to Zaibach." Hitomi was just about to contradict what Masumi just said but thought better of it.  
  
They were walking for about a half hour and had barely covered much of the Vione. They saw the main areas that Hitomi would need to be more familiar with such as the formal dinning hall, the mess hall, the library, the servants' living quarters, the kitchen, some of the training rooms, and the blacksmiths.  
  
As they walked along, both talked nonchalantly to each other... actually it was Masumi that did most of the talking. She really didn't like to talk about herself. Every time Hitomi asked her something about herself, the question was ignored and Masumi changed the subject.  
  
"Since you're new here, I will explain a few simple no-no's. Number one: Never talk back to a soldier or officer. Number two: Don't wander out of your room too late at night... sometimes the soldiers get drunk and wander... they cause a lot of trouble... you don't want to find yourself in the middle of it all." Masumi's voice seemed to soften at this. "Number three: When you get invited to a formal dinner, you never speak and you must never stare. Number four: Never and I say NEVER touch a Dragonslayer's guymelef. And that reminds me... don't go into the hanger where they are located. And lastly never threaten or fight with a person on this fortress. The only time you can fight is when practicing your battling skills. But you don't need to worry about that."  
  
Hitomi corrected her "Actually... I am learning to fight."  
  
Masumi suddenly stopped walking and Hitomi turned around to see what was the matter. Her eyes were wide and stared at Hitomi in disbelief.  
  
Hitomi barely heard what Masumi said for she talked just above a whisper. "You're what?! A woman isn't even aloud to pick up a weapon much less use it! Are you crazy? You're going to get yourself killed!"  
  
"Calm down! Folken-sama said that I could train. It's not like I'm being recruited into the army or anything." Hitomi tried to reassure her.  
  
"Oh... then that's none of my concern."  
  
It was mostly silent the rest of the trip. Both girls were starting to get tired and Masumi showed Hitomi back to her room. Just as Hitomi arrived at the door, her stomach gave off a rumble. Masumi laughed at this and said "I'll get someone from the kitchen to bring you some food. I have to go and do some things. If you need anything, don't be afraid to come and find me!"  
  
Hitomi gave a final wave goodbye to the shy maid girl who had now become her friend, smiled, and went into her room. 


	9. Fate Did It

Yo... how is everyone doing? I made a little boo-boo in about chapter 1 or 2... I forget which one but I said that Van found Hitomi's pendant, but when Hitomi was on the battlefield that her pendant gave off a slight glow... which means she had it... well I meant to say that in her mind, she saw her pendant giving off a slight glow. She doesn't have it. It fell off when she was taken by the blue light. Sorry about that! Anyways... I've been having a little writer's block. Well I'm going to be busy because I got a new violin... and well I'm going to start to learn how to play. That will take a lot of my time. Thanks for reviewing!  
  
Disclaimer: Don't own, don't sue.  
  
Hitomi gave a final wave goodbye to the shy maid girl who had now become her friend, smiled, and went into her room.  
  
Chapter 9: Fate Did It  
  
Hitomi shut her door behind her and walked over to her bed. She collapsed on the bed, not feeling like taking off her shoes. She lay there with her legs hanging off the side of the bed for a while until she remembered that some food would be coming.  
  
Hitomi pushed herself up into a sitting position, unbuckled her shoes, and carried them to a far wall in her room to air out. Just as she placed her boots down, there was a knock on the door.  
  
She turned around and briskly walked to the door. Hitomi opened it to be face to face with no one. Sticking her head out the door, she saw a maid walking down the hall, not to far from where she stood. She then looked down to see that a tray was set in front of her door. The scent of food reached her nose and hunger took over. The tray was picked up and the door was shut as Hitomi kicked it.  
  
Placing down the tray on the bed, Hitomi carefully sat down in front of it, so as not to disturb any of the dishes on the tray and make them spill.  
  
Not having anything to eat all day certainly got the better of her and the food was gone instantly. The dishes were empty and Hitomi put the tray next to the fireplace. As she turned around, she noticed another article of clothing sitting on her couch.  
  
She ran her hand across the material to find that it was a gleaming piece of silk. She picked it up and held it up to the light coming through the window to find that it was white on top and slowly faded to a dark blue on the bottom. The length of it went down to her ankles and the top part was sleeveless. It was simply stunning.  
  
She went into the bathroom, carrying her nightdress with her. Hitomi splashed her face with water and ran a hand through her hair. She dressed into her nightgown and swished her mouth out with water. Walking out of the bathroom, she went to her bed and took down the curtains that were secured to the posts. Parting one section, she threw the covers back and jumped in. It didn't take long before she snuggled into the silky sheets and drifted off into a deep sleep.  
  
~To Dilandau~  
  
After dismissing the Dragonslayers from their training, Dilandau found himself walking through the Vione. In his mind ran many questions. They were about Hitomi... but they were not of his feelings. He had no idea what she doing there at the battlefield. He first wondered if Van's group left her there... or if she had turned traitor. But it just didn't seem like something that Allen or Van would do. Allen's the 'heroic knight' and Van is a king.  
  
'Why the hell would she be there?!' he screamed to himself.  
  
Then one thought came to his head. 'Is it all a set up? Did they leave her there so we would find her? Is she a spy for them?'  
  
It was possible... but Hitomi just didn't seem like a person who would be a spy. But then again... looks can be deceiving. He would have to keep a close eye on her... for now.  
  
~Hitomi~  
  
The sun peaked over the horizon and spread its gentle, timid rays of color onto Hitomi's sleeping form. The light reached her eyes, which in return opened little by little, and her pupils closed quite a bit to keep most of the light from entering her eyes. Blinking a few times, Hitomi sat up in bed and stretched. Her muscles felt a little sore from yesterday but that was to be expected. Parting her curtain around the bed, she slid from the mattress onto the sun-warmed floor.  
  
Walking over to her armoire, which now had her own clothing in it, she picked out a fresh green shirt and black pants. She ran her hands through her tangled hair a few times as she ambled towards her shoes. Slipping them on, she bucked the 2 buckles and stood there. Her attention was drawn towards the window as a few birds flew by suddenly. 'How easy it would be to just fly out of here... if I just had wings.' she aimlessly thought.  
  
The door then opened, causing her to snap away from her thoughts. Masumi's head cautiously peered into Hitomi's room. She spotted Hitomi standing near her window and entered through the doorway. Both girls smiled at each other in greeting and Hitomi walked the length of the room to where Masumi was standing.  
  
"Folken-sama requests that you come to the dinning hall for breakfast this morning. You can't eat in your room forever now... can you?" Masumi stated.  
  
"I guess not. Will you be there?" Hitomi asked.  
  
"No... the maids have their own eating quarters. The soldiers also have their own mess hall. You will be eating with Folken-sama, some of the generals, and the Dragonslayers."  
  
"Umm... are you sure I'm supposed to be there?" Hitomi questioned unsurely.  
  
"Of course I'm sure. Folken-sama told me himself to bring you down. So are you ready?"  
  
"I guess so..."  
  
With that said, they both left the room and Masumi led Hitomi to the dinning hall. Hitomi looked at her surroundings to try and remember where they were going. Certain paintings and armor were now landmarks in Hitomi's mind. They went up a few flights of stairs and down a few hallways until Masumi stopped in front of a two giant doors. Masumi gave her one last smile and pulled one large door open. Hitomi walked in as the door shut behind her.  
  
The dinning room wasn't too large but it looked like it was made so more tables could be placed inside if needed. There wasn't just on long table either. Three tables were placed together, forming an unfinished square with the middle table facing the door. A large window formed most of the wall behind the center table, making the room glow with an intense brilliance.  
  
Everyone in the room noticed their new guest and all conversations stopped. All eyes were on Hitomi, which made her start to feel extremely nervous. Thankfully she saw Folken get out of his chair from the center of the middle table and walk towards her. He gave her a reassuring smile and held out his hand for her to take.  
  
She placed her hand in his, and he led her down the couple of stairs. Folken let Hitomi walk in front of him, as he guided her towards the area he was sitting at. He pulled out the chair that was next to his and motioned for her to sit. She did and Folken sat down himself.  
  
"I'm glad you could join us Hitomi." Folken stated.  
  
Many people at the table looked at Folken with confused expressions that just showed the questions of who Hitomi was and what she was doing there. Folken noticed the strange stares everyone was giving Hitomi so he cleared his throat to get everyone's attention.  
  
"This young lady's name is Hitomi. She is our guest. Nothing more can really be explained." And with that, everyone took the answer they got and didn't ask any further questions.  
  
Folken talked to Hitomi and introduced some of the people sitting at the table with them until the doors opened once again to reveal several people with trays of food. It was all brought in and set down on the tables. Everyone loaded their plate and ate. It was mostly quite during that half- hour and once the food was eaten, the Dragonslayers stood up and left.  
  
Not too long after the Dragonslayers left, Folken also excused himself. Hitomi got up also and followed behind Folken. Once outside of the door, Hitomi started to head in the direction she had come from.  
  
As Hitomi walked down one of the corridors, she recognized the door of the training room she used from yesterday. She was glad she had found it and immediately walked in.  
  
'It's empty... good... I can practice in here.' Hitomi stated to herself.  
  
She walked straight to the same rack that held her weapon. (AN: I'm going to call her weapon a variety of names... just so you don't get confused... I'll be calling it a glaive, rod, pole, or staff. Do you think staff sounds too much of a magic use weapon? Can anyone think of any other weapon names that are like those? Tell me in your reviews.)  
  
Hitomi picked up the glaive and walked to the center of the room. She started to practice by herself, swinging the blade through the air and using the pole as a blocking device. Hitomi was so focused on training that she didn't take notice to a person entering the room.  
  
A mocking voice came from the doorway. "You're not that bad... for a woman."  
  
Hitomi whirled around to face who spoke, and instantly saw Dilandau.  
  
"How would you know? I thought women here weren't even aloud to pick up a weapon, much less learn how to use it properly." Hitomi retorted.  
  
"No... you got it all wrong. Women are aloud to use weapons. They could become soldiers if they want... it's not against the law or anything. It's just that most women have kids or they have someone to protect them... like their husbands. They don't see why they would need to learn to fight." Dilandau corrected her.  
  
"So what's your opinion on any woman learning to fight?"  
  
"Using a weapon is a skill... if used properly, it can show a sign of strength. It also shows that you don't need someone to hide behind. I respect any woman who can protect herself. But when you run away... that just shows your weakness. Running away is a sign of cowardice... you can't handle what's going on... so you run away."  
  
Hitomi stood there, staring at Dilandau who was now leaning against a wall, arms folded across his chest. It was silent for some time till she saw Dilandau smile to himself then start talking again.  
  
"Van is weak. He ran from his country when it was burning to the ground. He ran from the fight... he..." but Dilandau was cut short when Hitomi started to run toward him, her glaive ready to attack. Dilandau pulled out his sword just in time to block the downward slash she made.  
  
"Van is NOT weak! He is a strong person that loved his country dearly! He would have stayed and fought you until he died!" she yelled at him while pushing her glaive down on his sword.  
  
"Then why didn't Van stay and fight then?" Dilandau pushed her away and stood ready for another attack.  
  
"Because..." Hitomi couldn't think of anything to say. How would she explain the blue light that came down and took Van away from the fight? "... I don't know how to explain it... but... let's just say that fate decided to take him away." She relaxed her stance and stood up straight... giving him a sign she didn't wish to fight him.  
  
Dilandau was oblivious to what she just said. "Fate? How did fate take him away from a fight?"  
  
"I told you... I can't explain it."  
  
"So did fate put you on that battlefield? Did fate put you here?" Dilandau questioned her.  
  
"I don't know... it's possible though."  
  
Seeing that he wasn't getting anywhere, Dilandau sheathed his sword and left the room without another word.  
  
'Either she isn't acting as one of Fanel's spies or she is. But there are no clues on which one.' Dilandau contemplated once outside the doorway.  
  
His plan was to try and get some sort of clue that would tell him if she was a spy or not... to try and manipulate her... but now he only got more confused.  
  
'Fate? What the hell was she talking about anyways?' 


	10. Masumi's Past

Trying to update as soon as possible. Thanks again for all the reviews! Can we try for 100 reviews total?  
  
To Feye Morgan: No, Folken never said why he wanted Hitomi to train. Hitomi in a way decided for herself that she wanted to protect herself and learn to fight so no one would die on her part. And Folken also did say "Maybe later you will be useful to us."  
  
To Xelena: Dilandau doesn't expect Hitomi, if she even was a spy, to just give it out that she is one. Lol... I hope a real spy wouldn't be that stupid. He knows he will have to trick her into saying something or maybe catch her doing something suspicious. Hope that's clear!  
  
To snowykittenz: I thought about calling Hitomi's weapon a scythe... but the shapes are totally different and people would get the wrong picture of what the weapon actually looks like. Scythe looks like an upside-down L... Hitomi's blade like I said before is more of a D. Thanks for the suggestion thought!  
  
Disclaimer: Ughh... must I repeat myself? I don't own Escaflowne. Only my characters... like Masumi.  
  
His plan was to try and get some sort of clue that would tell him if she was a spy or not... to try and manipulate her... but now he only got more confused.  
  
'Fate? What the hell was she talking about anyways?'  
  
Chapter 10: Masumi's Past  
  
A bemused Dilandau walked down the corridor. Hitomi's words still went through his mind. 'Fate? A battle was decided by the people involved... not fate.'  
  
But he couldn't let his mind wander on just that. He had more important things to do than just think about some silly words. So pushing his thoughts away for later, he continued down the corridor... looking for something to do.  
  
~Hitomi~  
  
'Well... what I said was somewhat true... at least I'm pretty sure I knew what I was talking about. I was actually the one who took Van away from the battle. It was because of my pendant.'  
  
Suddenly Hitomi's thoughts were broken when a scream was heard from just outside the door. Her adrenaline kicked in as she sprinted towards the door. She ripped it open with her glaive in the other hand. She saw a tray with spilled tea and broken glass scattered along the floor only a little ways from where she now stood. She then heard some voices from around the corner.  
  
"Trying to run away? You might just have to pay with your life for not watching where you were going!" a masculine voice shouted.  
  
"No! Please don't kill me! Please! I'm sorry!"  
  
That voice... it was...  
  
"Masumi!" Hitomi shrieked.  
  
Her panic rose as Hitomi sprinted around the corner to where she saw Masumi. She was being held up by her shirt collar against the wall by a man who looked like a soldier. Blood ran down her lip and her cheek looked red. A huge wet stain could be seen on the front of the man's shirt. His short black hair was mussed and his clothing was wrinkled. He wasn't clad in armor but had a dagger held ready in one hand.  
  
Instincts kicked in and without thinking, Hitomi charged the man with her blunt glaive held ready to attack. The soldier was too occupied with Masumi that he didn't notice Hitomi until he heard the running footsteps coming his way. His attention snapped her way but he was too late.  
  
The hand that held the knife and the other hand that was holding Masumi were both struck from underneath by part of the wood pole on Hitomi's glaive. The dagger flew in the air and clattered on the ground. It spun uncontrollably and skidded down the corridor further from the man's grasp.  
  
To get him away from Masumi, Hitomi rammed the non-blade end into his stomach. He crumpled back a few steps and fell to his knees, grasping his abdomen. Seeing he was down, Hitomi rushed over to where Masumi sat against the wall. She was crying and when Hitomi put a hand on her shoulder, she shrunk away.  
  
"Masumi it's me... Hitomi." she said reassuringly.  
  
Masumi looked up from her hands to see a smiling Hitomi kneeling in front of her.  
  
"Hitomi... thank y..." but before she could finish, the soldier was once again on his feet, rushing towards both girls. Hitomi didn't have time to react and was grabbed by her hair. She held her glaive tight and swung it behind her, hoping it hit her target. The grip on her head was loosened and she quickly leapt to her right. Wasting no time, she grabbed her glaive with both hands and propelled the flat end of the blade right into the side of the guy's head.  
  
Pain lit his features for a moment until he wobbled on his feet and fell unconscious to the floor. Hitomi felt excited for a moment but the feeling vanished once she felt Masumi run and hug her. Relief spread throughout her mind, making her relax. If she hadn't been there... she would have lost her only friend on the Vione.  
  
Hitomi could feel Masumi start to shake as the current events just replayed in her mind.  
  
"Masumi... let me take you back to my room. You need to pull yourself together. You need to tell me what happened. Someone is going to find that guy I knocked out and will start asking questions. I need to know what happened exactly. Will you be able to tell me?" Hitomi quietly asked.  
  
Masumi nodded her head and followed closely by Hitomi. They arrived at Hitomi's room and walked in. Hitomi set her glaive down on her bed and sat down next to Masumi, who was already sitting on the couch.  
  
"Take a few breaths and tell me what happened. If you can't go on at a certain point than you can stop. There is always another time when you are more composed." Hitomi advised her.  
  
"Ok... well I was walking down the hall carrying a tray of fresh tea. Just as I rounded the corner... that soldier and I collided. The tea spilled all over the front of his shirt. The tea was still hot and I think it burned him. He got really mad and I could tell he was partly drunk. I apologized and tried to walk away as quickly as I could, but he caught me by the arm. He muttered that he was going to kill me, and I tried to free myself from his grip."  
  
Hitomi could see tears starting to form in Masumi's eyes, but she refused to let them fall.  
  
She continued, "I pulled my arm and I felt his grip loose hold a little so I pushed myself away from him as hard as I could, but he let go of my arm and I fell to the floor. That's when he picked me up by my collar, and threw me against the wall. He... pinned me there and forced his lips onto mine. I bit his bottom lip and he slapped me. And he just... kept on slapping me. He punched me a few times and I... I begged him to stop... but he just laughed. That's when I screamed... and before I knew it... I was sitting on the floor... and you grasped my shoulder. I thought it was him... and I thought I heard your voice... but I told myself that I was imagining things. When I opened my eyes though, you were there. And you know the rest that happened."  
  
Hitomi listened intently the whole time. The anger built up in her. Masumi would have died... if someone hadn't been there. Masumi interrupted her thoughts.  
  
"Hitomi... you may have been wondering about this... about my past..."  
  
"Masumi" Hitomi started to say, "I don't want you to tell me anything that's just going to dig up bad memories."  
  
"It's ok... I just need someone to know... I've never told anyone else this actually."  
  
The sadness started to fill Masumi's eyes and she looked as if the resurfacing of her past events were happening right that instant.  
  
"When I was about 8 years old, my home town was attacked by a traveling gang of bandits and murders. They took anything they could and burnt down all of the houses. Our town was so small and had no protection... everyone was helpless. My mother hid me in our house while my father went to try and fight them off. Everyone tried just using farming tools as weapons... but many members of the gang had swords and real weapons. My mother was killed when they stormed our house but they never found me. Many houses were being burned down and I climbed out of a window from my home.  
  
"I was so scared and tried to look for a place to hide, but there were gang members everywhere. Before I knew what was happening, one of them grabbed me from behind and held a knife to my throat. But instead of killing me, he took me with them. They left the village after it was all ransacked, and continued onto another place, letting my village burn to the ground. I don't know how long I spent with the gang... but everyday I just wanted to die. To them... I was just a toy... they beat me when they were angry, and raped me when they were bored." Masumi's voice choked at this.  
  
Seeing that Masumi would break down right there, Hitomi pulled the girl into a hug and let Masumi cry all her tears of rage and sorrow. When she was done crying, Masumi took a deep breath and carried on with her story.  
  
"One day that all changed. We were traveling down a country road; I was locked up in a sort of wooden cage that was pulled by a horse. They saw a carriage coming toward them on the road and planned to raid it. But what they didn't know was that the carriage was one of Zaibach's. There were also men on horseback the surrounded the carriage. The gang members didn't even know what was to come.  
  
"Soon enough they attacked the more armored and better trained soldiers of Zaibach. It wasn't a very long battle, but all the people of the gang had been killed and some ran away. They searched everything that was left behind by the bunch of criminals, and came across me. At first they were unsure of what they should do, but the person that was in the carriage stepped out. I didn't know who he was back then... but I later learned that it was Folken who saved me. He saw how young I was, and broke me out of the cage. He tried to calm me down and reassured me that I would be ok if I went with him. I didn't just want to be left there alone, so I had no choice but to trust him. I went into the carriage with him and he assured me that I could start a new life in Zaibach. And for once, that's what happened. I started a new life here... in Zaibach."  
  
Hitomi almost felt tears spring to her eyes as she listened to all the painful things Masumi went through.  
  
'No one should ever have to go through that.' Hitomi thought to herself.  
  
Masumi gave a slight smile. It looked as though a great weight had been lifted off her shoulders, and that memory was no longer buried within the depths of her mind. Just as Hitomi was going to say something, the door burst open. A young boy came in and looked at Hitomi.  
  
"Folken-sama wishes to see you in his study Lady Hitomi." the young boy announced to her. "Please follow me."  
  
Hitomi gave an apologetic nod to Masumi and stood up. She followed the boy out with one question on her mind. 'Why would Folken need to see me?'  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Sorry if this chapter was a little boring when Masumi was talking about her past... well actually I dunno... you tell me if you thought it was good or boring. I'll try to update soon again. R&R please!! 


	11. Surprise

Ok... so we didn't quite get to 100 reviews... but I'm sure we can hit that today! Some of you have been saying there is not enough Dilandau in a few of the chapters. Sorry! I'm writing it, but I'm telling you now... there will be plenty of Dilandau to come. Hehehe... you'll just have to be patient! Sorry it took a little bit longer to get this out... but I have a joke for everyone.  
  
What do you call a man who eats his wife's sister? ~An anteater~  
  
And what do you call a man who eats his mother-in-law? ~A gladiator~  
  
Hahahahaha! I love those! Do you get the second one? Glad-he-ate-her. Tell that one to your parents. Lol...  
  
Disclaimer: I solemnly swear that I hereby do not own Escaflowne.  
  
"Folken-sama wishes to see you in his study Lady Hitomi." the young boy announced to her. "Please follow me."  
  
Hitomi gave an apologetic nod to Masumi and stood up. She followed the boy out with one question on her mind. 'Why would Folken need to see me?'  
  
Chapter 11: Surprise  
  
Hitomi followed the boy in silence. The walk didn't seem very long and before she knew it, they were in front of Folken's door. The boy knocked on the door and Folken's voice could be heard from inside, beckoning Hitomi to come in.  
  
She walked in as the messenger opened the door, and the first person she saw was the soldier she had knocked out. Her stomach lurched when she saw him but when she spotted Dilandau leaning against the opposite wall, her body froze.  
  
'What is he doing here?' she thought.  
  
Folken looked directly at her and said, "Hitomi... please come forward and take a seat."  
  
She did as he asked and glanced at the soldier. He looked furious and ready to pounce on her at any second.  
  
"Dilandau said he came across this man lying unconscious in the middle of the hall. When he woke up, he said that a short-brown haired girl carrying a glaive had attacked him and knocked him out. Since you're the only one that fits the description, will you please explain?" Folken kindly asked.  
  
"I didn't just run up and attack him. He was about to slit Masumi's throat!" Hitomi yelled.  
  
"Hitomi... there is no need to shout. Please tell me exactly what happened."  
  
Hitomi told him everything, from what Masumi had told her, to what she had done to rescue Masumi.  
  
Folken nodded his head and when Hitomi was done, he looked at the soldier. "Hitomi's explanation is much better than yours. Plus she would never attack someone for no reason. I'll leave your punishment up to the generals. Report straight to your quarters, and never try something like that again."  
  
The soldier glared at Hitomi one last time and stalked out the door after giving a slight bow towards Folken. When the door shut, Folken looked at Hitomi and gave her a slight smile.  
  
"Thank you for saving Masumi. Poor girl has been through so much. You may go now." Folken told Hitomi.  
  
Hitomi then stood up, thanked him, and walked out of the room. She made her way back to her chambers and when she arrived, she found Masumi still sitting on the couch, in front of a blazing fire. Masumi got up and walked towards Hitomi when she heard her enter the room.  
  
"I just wanted to thank you again for saving me." Masumi said quietly.  
  
"I just talked to Folken about it, and the man who tried to kill you is going to be punished." Hitomi informed her.  
  
Masumi's eyes lightened at this and she smiled a bit. Thanking Hitomi once more, she said goodbye and left Hitomi's room.  
  
Watching in the shadows near Hitomi's room, Dilandau stood there and studied Masumi. She did look a bit beat up, and her face looked covered in tears.  
  
'So she wasn't lying.' Dilandau told himself.  
  
Dilandau sighed. When he found the man lying in the middle of the hall, at first he thought the soldier passed out from too much to drink, but when the man woke up, he heard him say 'I'm going to kill that bitch!'. When Dilandau asked whom he was talking about, he said that a girl carrying a glaive attacked him.  
  
When that was said, Dilandau went straight to Folken with the soldier to report what happened. Now everyone was going to be suspicious of Hitomi... she attacked someone without warning... and there was little doubt in his mind that she wasn't a spy.  
  
But now with Hitomi's side of the incident, Masumi's injuries, and the soldier's slight drunkenness, Dilandau was back where he started. Nothing could really be put against Hitomi yet.  
  
Frustrated, Dilandau made his way back to the mess hall. He didn't feel like doing much of anything else that day, so he decided that he would give the Dragonslayers off for the rest of the day.  
  
~Hitomi~  
  
When Masumi left, Hitomi looked by the fire and there was a tray of food set there. Sitting on top was a note that read:  
  
Hitomi, thought you were going to be tired after what you did today, so I had your dinner brought to you. Hope you don't mind. Thank you again! ~Masumi~  
  
Now that she thought about it, Hitomi felt pretty exhausted. Lazily she sat on the floor by the fire and pulled the tray closer to her.  
  
After eating, she walked over to her bed and saw that her glaive was still there.  
  
'I must have laid it there and forgotten about it.' she cursed herself.  
  
"Oh well. I'll put it back tomorrow." And with that, Hitomi picked up her training weapon, and leaned it against the wall next to her bed. Looking outside, Hitomi noticed very dark clouds covering the sky and saw lightning shoot across the darkness in the distance. Little drops of water started to collect on her window, warning that it would soon turn into a downpour. Stretching her muscles, Hitomi didn't bother to change into night clothing. She jumped right into her bed, and fell asleep to the low rumble of thunder.  
  
~Van~  
  
The cold rain started to pour down, and hit Van with a driving force. His wings were spread and beating hard against the mighty wind. Willing his strength to hold on just a little longer, he smiled to himself. He was right. His destination, although invisible, could clearly be seen. Rain seemed against him, but it was defiantly on his side now. As the rain fell through the air, where most spots were free of intervention, one spot in particular stood out. The rain did not fall freely for an object was in its way of finishing the journey. That object was the Vione.  
  
*Flashback*  
  
"Hitomi!" Van woke from his dream very suddenly.  
  
"Hitomi... are you on the Vione?" he questioned himself.  
  
His dream was short, but it was enough to give him a message. He saw Hitomi, looking out of one of the windows on the Vione. Right below the Vione he saw a mountain range that he recognized. He didn't waste any time pondering what he just saw, and jumped out of bed to find Allen.  
  
A map was whipped out and Van pointed out where he saw Hitomi. The Crusade's direction was changed and soon they were on their way to Hitomi.  
  
Everyone knew that to win this war, they needed Hitomi. Allen wanted to attack the Vione, but Van went against it. They couldn't afford a surprise attack, and right now all they required was Hitomi. Surprise attacks could be conducted later with Hitomi's dowsing ability.  
  
It was decided then that the Crusade would only fly so close to the Vione and Van would fly the rest of the way on his own. Escaflowne would drag too much attention so he chose to use his wings.  
  
*End of Flashback*  
  
The Vione grew very close, and Van flew lower. He could now see things better, but he didn't see any openings he could go into. He flew to the other side of it and saw an open docking bay. His wings heavy with rain, but he managed to fly to the ledge and pull his white soaked wings back into his body. He dropped inside and quickly looked around for anyone. No one was in sight and all was quiet.  
  
Van closed his eyes and used the dowsing skill Hitomi had taught him. Even though Van knew how to do it, he could only locate a person in close range. That's why they still needed Hitomi. She could see things much further away and she always had visions, which could help them in more ways than one.  
  
Her pendant swayed back and forth in his mind until it found its target and swung in her direction. Van then threw his eyes open and sprinted away.  
  
~Hitomi~  
  
A huge crash of lightning streaked past Hitomi's window, and made her jump awake. She unexpectedly had a feeling that something on the Vione was happening. It kept tugging at her mind so she threw off her covers and grabbed her glaive. She peaked out of her door and heard footsteps from above her.  
  
Running down the hall, Hitomi got to a flight of stairs just as some soldiers from the floor above her were running down them. She went right in behind them and followed. She knew she should have just stayed in her room because out here, she might just get in the way.  
  
She ignored her thoughts and continued down another hall. Standing out of the way, Hitomi watched as confused soldiers ran back and forth. Just barely, she heard one of the soldiers say 'Intruder'.  
  
Curiosity got the better of her, and she ran down the corridor. Dowsing in her mind, she went in the direction her pendant pointed. But just as she turned a corner, she rammed right into someone. She fell backwards and dropped her glaive. When she opened her eyes, she couldn't believe what she saw.  
  
"Van!"  
  
He opened his eyes only to be greeted by Hitomi.  
  
Van quickly jumped to his feet and pulled Hitomi up as well and said "Quick! We've got to get out of here! Come on!"  
  
Van had a firm grip on Hitomi's wrist as they were both running away from oncoming soldiers. Hitomi was so surprised she didn't know what to think or do. So she was going to be rescued after all?  
  
But as they were running, they turned another corner only to be greeted with a dead end. Van looked and saw a window... their only chance at an escape. He grabbed his sword and ran over to the glass. Using the sword's hilt, Van started to hit the glass with it. With a few hits, it shattered. Van cleared the rest of the glass still in the opening and jumped onto the edge of the window. He pulled Hitomi up to him just as some soldiers started to round the corner.  
  
Grabbing Hitomi around the waist, he jumped from the opening. Hitomi put her arms around his neck, and Van got a better hold. Just a few seconds after jumping from the Vione, with some effort, Van let his wings out.  
  
Beating against the light rain, the two then flew away towards the Crusade.  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Ok! Don't kill me! And don't worry!! I promise this will still be and always will be a DxH fanfic. I mean... come on! You got to have some sort of twists and crap in it right? It's got to be different from all the other ones you've read! So sit back, relax, wait for the next chapter to get written, and R&R! 


	12. Got Another Thing Coming

Yeah! Past 100 reviews! I'm so happy! And can someone tell me if they recall throughout the series that Dilandau had never seen Van's wings? I'm pretty sure that he never did... I just want to be sure. Please R&R!  
  
To Lady Starlight: Sorry but I won't change the pairing! As I said in the first chapter... 'If you don't like the pairing, then don't read it.'  
  
Disclaimer: See Chapters 1-11.  
  
Grabbing Hitomi around the waist, he jumped from the opening. Hitomi put her arms around his neck, and Van got a better hold. Just a few seconds after jumping from the Vione, with some effort, Van let his wings out.  
  
Beating against the light rain, the two then flew away towards the Crusade.  
  
Chapter 12: Got Another Thing Coming  
  
Dilandau followed a soldier that was leading him to where the intruder escaped. But as he ran down one of the halls, Hitomi's training weapon came into plain view. He stopped next to it abruptly and looked at it. It certainly was the one that Hitomi used.  
  
'Why would she have just discarded it here though?' he questioned himself.  
  
He pushed the thought away from his head and went to check on other things. When he reached the end of the hall, he was struck with confusion. The intruder had escaped? But how? Only the window was broken. If they jumped, the fall would surely kill them. A group of armed men were all gathered around the window that now showed no signs of glass. Every one of the men tried to get a glimpse out the window.  
  
Dilandau had to see for himself, so he pushed his way through and finally reached the opening that the cold damp night air blew through. He gazed out it for a few seconds and squinted his eyes to try and focus out in the distance. It was just barely visible, but a faint glow of white that looked like a bird's wings cold be seen in the expanse of air in front of him.  
  
Dilandau was now confused as ever and as he looked around, it seemed all the other men didn't know what was going on either. They started to leave, seeing as the intruder was gone and the mysterious white wings disappeared from the darkness. What he did know was that Folken probably knew exactly what happened.  
  
As he went in search of Folken, he walked past Hitomi's weapon once more. Instead of leaving it there, he picked it up and took it with him. He had a feeling that the intruder had to do something with Hitomi, but to get real answers, he hastily ran around seeking Folken.  
  
~Hitomi~  
  
It was only a few minutes before the Crusade was in plain view. Hitomi looked at Van's face. He hadn't spoken to her the whole time they were flying. It was a total shock for Hitomi when she saw Van on the Vione, and now it was all sinking in. She had just been rescued.  
  
A part of her was sad because she had just made friends with Masumi... now she may never see her again. But now Hitomi was going to see all of her other friends.  
  
The Crusade was right in front of them now, and Van flew into the guymelef's docking area. He pulled his wings in and set Hitomi down on her feet. Allen was there, waiting for them, and as soon as he saw Hitomi, he rushed over to her and pulled her into a hug.  
  
"Hitomi... you don't know how worried we have all been! Are you ok? Did those Zaibach bastards do anything to you? They didn't brain wash you? You still remember who I am?" Allen just sounded like he would never shut up so Hitomi silenced him.  
  
"Yes Allen! I'm fine! And no... they didn't do anything to harm me."  
  
As though Allen didn't believe her, he backed up a little more and started to look her over, as if trying to find a bruise or scratch that would say she was lying. Before Allen could find any marking on Hitomi, Van walked forward to Allen.  
  
"It's freezing in here and being wet from the rain certainly doesn't help us a whole lot. We can have Millerna look her over when we get back to Austuria. For now, lets just get dried and warm. I'm exhausted... flying against the wind and rain certainly tires you out." Van said as he stretched his arms above his head.  
  
Hitomi started to shiver, so Allen guided her inside with Van right behind them.  
  
Hitomi and Van had gone into another room on the Crusade and lit a fire in the fireplace. Hitomi sat in front of it next to Van, trying the best to dry off her clothes. She didn't have any clothes with her, and the Crusade didn't have any extra on hand. She looked at herself and found she was still clad in her green shirt and black leather pants. Then the thought struck her.  
  
"My uniform!" she said aloud "It's still back on the Vione!"  
  
Van looked up at her and just noticed then that she wasn't in her usual outfit from the Mystic Moon. He gave her a curious stare as to say 'Where did you get those clothes?' but Hitomi noticed his confused look and told him that Zaibach had made new clothes for her.  
  
"Why did they give you new clothes? At first I thought that you went back to the Mystic Moon. But they are murderers Hitomi. I was sure that if they had taken you, that you would have been killed already." Van told her.  
  
"They are NOT murderers Van!" Hitomi said a little louder than she wanted.  
  
"How would you know? They destroyed my country and have killed innocent people!" Van retorted.  
  
Hitomi could feel her anger rising. "They don't kill innocent people!"  
  
"You were there the whole time Fanelia burnt to the ground! How can you be on their side? They must have done something to your memories to make you forget."  
  
"They did nothing to my memories what-so-ever Van. Why won't you believe me?" she said pleadingly.  
  
"I'm sorry Hitomi... it's just that I was so worried about you. I would never forgive myself if those Zaibach sorcerers did anything to you... please forgive me..."  
  
Van didn't wait for Hitomi to answer and pulled her into his embrace. She was surprised immensely by his actions and didn't know what to do. But as he held her, Hitomi felt no warmth or love coming from his hold. It felt like a dead hug... it didn't mean anything.  
  
Hitomi just sat there and didn't return his hug. After not getting a reaction, he let her go and stood up rather quickly. He walked towards the door to the room and turned around to face her before he left.  
  
"It's good to have you back Hitomi." And with that, Van left Hitomi sitting next to the fire alone.  
  
'Something has changed about Van... and I even sense it in Allen. I wonder what happened while I was gone.' she thought to herself.  
  
Van walked down to the main deck of the Crusade where he knew Allen would be.  
  
Van spotted Allen staring out the window. "Allen... Hitomi might be a little difficult to get to help us out. I don't know if Zaibach did do something to her head, but she doesn't seem so against them any more. It's almost as if she is siding with them."  
  
"Don't worry Van. I'm sure you can get her to change her ways. We can talk about how later, once we arrive back in Austuria. It will only be about twenty minutes." Allen informed him.  
  
"Thanks Allen. See you later then." Van left the knight and went to a spare bunk in one of the rooms. He lay down on the uncomfortable bed and closed his eyes to rest for the remaining trip.  
  
~Dilandau~  
  
Folken was sitting in his study when a loud knock was heard from the door. The person on the other side didn't wait for permission and walked straight in.  
  
"Folken... I know you know what just happened. Care to inform me?" said Dilandau.  
  
Folken followed Dilandau with his eyes as he walked toward him. "I bet you're wondering where Hitomi is?" the young general nodded his head at this. "And you're wondering who the intruder was?"  
  
"Yeah... just what the hell happened?" Dilandau simplified.  
  
Folken took a deep breath of air. "First of all... the intruder was Van Fanel."  
  
Dilandau's jaw clearly clenched at the mention of his name. Folken ignored this and continued.  
  
"Hitomi is gone. Van came and rescued her."  
  
"But how could they have escaped? I was told they escaped through a window. Why the hell would anyone be so stupid? Escaflowne was nowhere in site and Van has no other flying guymelefs. How did they get away?" Dilandau was very perplexed but Folken didn't look the least bit confused at all.  
  
"Dilandau... have you ever heard of the Draconians?" Folken asked him.  
  
"Yeah, I know the story."  
  
"But it isn't just a story... it really happened... and there are such things as Draconians. Van is one of them. He has wings and can fly. That is how he got away so quickly."  
  
Understanding shown on his features. "Is that so?" and without another word, Dilandau bowed slightly to Folken and left the room.  
  
Walking down the hall, Dilandau still held onto Hitomi's glaive. He didn't know what to think. Did Hitomi see it coming and go with Van automatically? Or did he take her by force? In his eyes, Hitomi looked like she was starting to adjust to her new life. He respected her... especially since she was so willing to learn to defend herself. She was determined and didn't dwell on things. 'She's not as weak as she looks.' Dilandau told himself.  
  
But deep inside he had a feeling... a feeling that told him they would meet again. He didn't know when or where... but he knew that this wouldn't be goodbye.  
  
~Hitomi~  
  
The Crusade shook a little as it was being anchored down in Austuria. They arrived about 5 minutes ago and were now in the process of docking. Once all the lines were secure, the crew got off board, followed by Hitomi, Van, and Allen. Carriages were waiting by the docks to bring them to the palace.  
  
A few people got into each carriage and they all rode off. After a bumpy ride down the dirt roads, they arrived at their destination. Millerna and Chid were waiting at the front gates and when they saw Hitomi exit one of the carriages, they both ran to greet her.  
  
"Hitomi!" both Chid and Millerna yelled to her.  
  
Hitomi smiled at them. Chid gave her a giant hug and Millerna grabbed Hitomi's arm to drag her into the palace.  
  
"Hitomi, I need to just look you over... if it's ok with you. I just want to make sure you're not hurt." Millerna told her.  
  
Nodding her head, Hitomi followed Millerna to the infirmary. Millerna worked quickly and soon said that Hitomi was in perfect health and wasn't hurt anywhere. Hitomi was given a nightdress that belonged to Millerna since at the time she had no other clothes than the ones she had on.  
  
She went back to the room she had stayed before and found herself staring out the window. All the things that happened in such a short time... she kept thinking about them and found that she couldn't sleep. Feeling a slight cool breeze from her window, she decided to go in the gardens to take a walk and refresh her head.  
  
It was peaceful outside and the wind blew gently. The storm came and went in Austuria a while ago, leaving the sky clear and beautiful, full of stars glowing dimly against the brightness of the Mystic Moon.  
  
Staying on the path near the palace, Hitomi just kept walking when suddenly the silence was broken by two voices coming from inside. The voices, Hitomi recognized, were those of Van and Allen. At first there was a little shouting but then they calmed down and seemed in deep discussion.  
  
A curious Hitomi crept closer to the window, which she now figured was on the first floor.  
  
Allen's voice could be heard talking now. "Van... you're going to have to persuade her to help us. Use love if you have to. I've already tried... and she turned me down. Remember that she is the key to winning this war."  
  
"I know. She has great powers... powers that will help us beat Zaibach once and for all. Her dowsing ability will help us find where the Vione is and her visions will forewarn us of any attacks being planned against us. With Hitomi, we are sure to win." Van replied.  
  
Hitomi didn't know what to believe. Had she just heard them both correctly? They rescued her just so they could use her powers? Was that all she was good for? No... she didn't want to believe it...  
  
Van continued to speak, "I'll get her thinking that I love her. Love will always sway a person's heart... so whatever we ask, she will probably do because she will believe I love her."  
  
Allen interrupted him. "I thought you did love her."  
  
"I thought I did... but then I found out that it could never be. She would have to go home at some time... staying here would be nearly impossible. And she is always trying to stop me from fighting. She doesn't know how I feel. She's just scared of battle... and fighting... that's all. She has strong psychic powers, but is weak underneath it all."  
  
Hitomi clasped her hands over her ears. She didn't want to listen anymore. She was sure it wasn't a dream or anything else. It was reality and those words were coming out of Van's mouth. Everything from before was all a lie. She thought she was in love with Van too... but... when he found out the power she had, that was all that mattered.  
  
Hitomi didn't want to hear anymore so she ran back to her room as quietly as she could. She held back her tears and when she got to her room, Hitomi fell onto her bed and cried all her frustrations and anger out.  
  
Once Hitomi pulled herself back together, she thought back to when she was on the Vione. She had been treated with so much respect. Zaibach wasn't evil and they didn't murder if they didn't have to. She was living proof of that. They also saved Masumi, and weren't all that evil.  
  
She wouldn't let anyone use her... not like a tool... and especially not the way they pleased. Hitomi wasn't stupid and she wouldn't fall into Van's trap of love. Secretly smiling to herself, Hitomi thought of a little trap of her own.  
  
'I'll play along with you Van... but just when you think you've got control, you've got another thing coming.' 


	13. Plan in Action

MysticalDreamer: I got great response from all the reviews for the last chapter! Thank you all!  
  
Van: Why is everyone saying I'm an ass?  
  
MysticalDreamer: Cause you're going to use Hitomi... you ass!  
  
Van: Hey... I'm not writing the story here!  
  
MysticalDreamer: True... true... but you see, if you don't use Hitomi... then there would be no reason for Hitomi to go back to Zaibach. I mean come on! Hitomi and Dilandau aren't in love yet! Plus I think everyone would want to see you're ass get kicked by Hitomi anyways! Hehe!  
  
Van: Great... so for this fanfiction, I'm a total ass.  
  
MysticalDreamer: Cheer up! Maybe I'll have you apologize or something in the end... then you won't look like a total loser. I believe this is my longest chapter yet and you're in for a big treat! Yeah!  
  
Disclaimer: I don't ownnnnnnnnnnn... so don't sueeeeeeeeee!!!  
  
She wouldn't let anyone use her... not like a tool... and especially not the way they pleased. Hitomi wasn't stupid and she wouldn't fall into Van's trap of love. Secretly smiling to herself, Hitomi thought of a little trap of her own.  
  
'I'll play along with you Van... but just when you think you've got control, you've got another thing coming.'  
  
Chapter 13: Plan in Action  
  
Night came and gone and soon the palace was up and about, getting on to their daily tasks. Hitomi slept peacefully that night and woke up a little after the sun. When she opened her eyes and once again surveyed her surroundings, she realized she was back in Austuria and all the nights events came back to her.  
  
She remembered every word of what Allen and Van had said. Her anger started to grow once again and she decided that she would take a run to cool herself off. She couldn't run from her problems, but at least she could keep her mind off them for the morning.  
  
She didn't have her tennis shoes with her any more because they were left on the Vione. Then a sudden thought came to mind, but as soon as the thought came to her mind, she spotted exactly what she was thinking of at the end of her bed.  
  
"I knew I left my track bag here!" she said excitedly.  
  
She ran over to it and wondered why she didn't notice it before. She lifted it up and placed it on her bed. Finding what she was looking for, Hitomi pulled out a pair of running shorts, a white t-shirt, and her spikes. Those were the only shoes she had in there, so they would have to do.  
  
'They're much better than wearing my black boots.' she told herself.  
  
Quickly changing, Hitomi walked outside, the whole time being given curious stares from the people of the palace. She ignored them and walked out one of the back exits of the palace. After a little wandering, she came across an empty field.  
  
Hitomi let the cool breeze wash over her skin as she jogged to one end of the field. After warming up a bit, she stretched and got in her ready position. An imaginary gunfire sounded in her head as she sprinted off down the field. The air felt so gentle and it soothed her resentment away. She was free from her worries.  
  
Slowing down a bit, Hitomi turned around to see how far she had ran and was quite surprised. She didn't feel tired at all and raced back to where she had started. Just as she turned around again, she heard a faint voice in the distance calling her name. The person woke her from the focus she put in running and snapped all anger back at her like a snapped rubber band.  
  
Remembering her plan, she plastered a fake smile on her face and turned around. She waved at Van and started to run toward him. When she arrived at where he was standing, Van just smiled at her.  
  
"I was wondering where you were Hitomi." he said. "We've been looking for you. You know it's dangerous outside... you shouldn't be out here."  
  
Hitomi frowned at him. "But why can't I be outside?"  
  
"Zaibach might come and attack at any time. You have to be safe."  
  
The way he said it made Hitomi bring up all her self-control to keep from slapping him. She gave a slight smile even though she didn't mean it.  
  
'I have to be safe? Why don't you just say that you don't want Zaibach to take me back so you can use me instead!' she silently yelled in her mind.  
  
Van gave her a curious stare as if questioning the expression that just flashed onto her face. He brushed it off and continued talking to Hitomi.  
  
"Why don't we go inside and have some breakfast?"  
  
Hitomi nodded her head and followed Van inside to the dining hall. During breakfast, Hitomi was asked a lot of questions and most of the answers, she lied about. Hitomi was relieved when she finished eating and excused herself from the room.  
  
'I thought the questions would never stop coming.' she told herself.  
  
If she couldn't go outside, then she might as we do something else she learned to enjoy. She searched for a little on the first floor of the palace and finally found what she was looking for.  
  
As she entered the door, Hitomi wondered if the room she just entered was even a training room. It was extravagantly decorated and many of the training weapons were all in showcases of beautifully polished wood and glass. The weapons inside didn't look well used either. Barely a scratch on most and some looked brand new.  
  
Hitomi searched the room for her weapon and did not find it. The weapons consisted of almost just swords and spears.  
  
"A spear is close enough." she told herself.  
  
Picking out a medium height spear, Hitomi walked to the center of the room and got into her stance. In her head she visualized the moves she had done on the Vione, and when she opened her eyes, she started to practice them.  
  
The spear swung to and fro, jabbing and spinning above her head. After her little warm-up, she decided to try something more extreme. She ran forward and when she gained enough momentum, she placed the bottom of the spear on the ground right in front of her, put all her strength on her arms, lifted both feet off the ground, and went flying through the air, her feet in front, as if kicking an enemy at full force. She landed on her feet and slid a little from her speed, her spear still held in her left hand behind her back. Gripping the spear with both hands, she swung fiercely to her right and stood up with the motion. She let the spear's wood pole roll around the back of her neck and grabbed it when it swung over her shoulder.  
  
She stopped and took a breath of air. Hitomi felt very proud of herself for doing the move and felt she was improving every time she picked up a weapon. Just as she was about to charge for another move, the door swung open, and there stood Allen.  
  
"Hitomi! We were searching everywhere for you. What are you doing in here?" Allen asked her.  
  
"I was... uh... just..." Hitomi couldn't think of anything to say. If she told Allen that she learned to fight on the Vione, he might get suspicious or not even believe her. So she made up the quickest lie she could muster out of her mind, which was going blank at the moment.  
  
"I was just wandering around when I saw that this door was left open. I was curious and peaked inside. It's so beautiful in here I didn't even know that it was a training room till I nearly tripped on this spear that was sitting on the floor." Hitomi smiled at him and silently hoped that he didn't push the matter any further.  
  
He just smiled back at her and took the spear from her hands. He looked down at the spear then at her face and noticed a slight perspiration building on her forehead.  
  
"Are you ok Hitomi? You're sweating... do you have a fever?" Allen asked.  
  
Hitomi didn't even notice that she even broke a sweat. She again searched her mind for a possible excuse and told him that she had been running early in the day. She also said that the palace was a little stuffy and she was getting warm.  
  
Allen shrugged and took her word for by agreeing that it was getting warm in most of the rooms. He walked over to the case she got the spear from and placed it on its hooks. He turned and walked towards the door, motioning for her to follow.  
  
"Whoever trains in there has to be more respectful... leaving weapons on the floor like that... can't they ever clean up after themselves?" he sighed at his comment and looked back at Hitomi. "It would be silly to think you were actually training with that spear." he laughed at this and didn't notice the expression Hitomi shot at him.  
  
"Anyways, woman should never pick up a weapon. Their minds are fragile and wouldn't be able to handle a weapon as skillfully as a man could. I bet on the battlefield, they wouldn't even be able to kill the enemy because they would be too afraid of taking away another's life." Hitomi's hands clenched together and she could feel her nails biting into her skin. The urge to prove him wrong was almost dominant but once Hitomi reminded herself of the plan, she pushed all revenge aside.  
  
'That can wait till later when the time is right.' she reminded herself.  
  
She once again gave Allen a very convincing smile and said "You're right Allen. Women shouldn't fight in wars. Now... why were you looking for me?"  
  
"Hitomi... we need you to help us. We have our troops ready and now we need you to use your powers to locate the Vione for us. We are going to surprise Zaibach with an attack right on their floating fortress. If we win, we will have the advantage in this war. Please Hitomi... will you help us?" Allen pleaded.  
  
Hitomi knew this was coming and it followed her plan perfectly. "Of course I'll help you. I want to beat Zaibach. They did kidnap me after all."  
  
Allen's eyes lit up with her answer. In his mind, his own plan was taking course. "Thank you Hitomi. Thank you so much." Then he embraced her, hugging her close.  
  
Hitomi lightly pushed away from him and he then informed her that the Crusade would be leaving that day. She was to find the Vione after take off on the Crusade. Allen ran off, telling her to be ready in her room by noon.  
  
Hitomi smiled to herself and quietly walked towards her room. She had about an hour to get ready, so she quickly washed herself off and changed into the clothes she had worn on the Vione, which were also freshly washed. She packed all her other stuff back into her track bag and set it on her bed.  
  
For the remaining time she looked out upon the landscape below her from her balcony. From the ports by the ocean, she could see the Crusade getting ready for take off and a few other levi-ships near it, which were loading soldiers for the attack.  
  
There weren't many soldiers by the looks of it, but then she reminded herself that it was a floating fortress and getting a lot of people on it would be hard enough. Just then there was a knock at her door. The person peaked their head inside and when Hitomi turned around, the person walked into the room.  
  
"We're ready to go Hitomi. Just follow me." Van said to her.  
  
Hitomi grabbed her bag and walked behind Van. Once they were out the front gates, they heard a few people call after them. Millerna, Chid, and Merle came running from behind calling their names.  
  
"Van-sama! Please don't go!" Merle screamed as she jumped onto Van, making him crash to the ground.  
  
"Don't worry Merle. I'll come back... I promise I'll come back alive." Van reassured her.  
  
Merle looked at him worriedly and finally nodded her head, giving him one last big hug, then finally got off him. Merle ran over to Hitomi also and hugged her around the waist.  
  
"Please come back alive Hitomi!" Merle whimpered into Hitomi's green shirt.  
  
Not wanting to promise anything, Hitomi returned her hug and took a step back. Everyone said their good-byes, and finally Van and Hitomi walked off towards the Crusade, giving one final wave goodbye to the others.  
  
A little while later, the levi-ships were off the ground, slowly starting to fly away from Austuria. The ships leisurely cruised up in the clouds because at the time they had nowhere to go. Everyone was waiting for Hitomi... the one girl who would point them in the right direction.  
  
In a medium sized room aboard the Crusade, the young seer sat at a hard wood table, a map of all of Gaea spread out before her. Van had just given her back her pendant, which at the time hung around his neck.  
  
'I almost forgot it fell off when I was transported to the battlefield... that was about a week ago.....' she remembered.  
  
She held her pendant in her right hand with her eyes closed. It swung in small circles above the map while she paced her hand across it. Hitomi searched out with her mind to try and find the massive floating fortress. She imagined the people that she had come to know there... Masumi, Folken, Dilandau, and Jajuka. How Van and Allen had filled her head with crazy ideas of how Zaibach was the evil of the world and that they had to be destroyed.  
  
The feelings of fatigue started to come upon her as she used all the energy she had to focus upon searching out the Vione. While still moving her hand that held the pendant across the map, Hitomi's hand started to shake. A chill ran down her spine as she started to sense something.  
  
Faces started to flash through her mind and soon enough her pendant stopped its circling above a location on the map. A bright flash of light made her open her eyes, now seeing that she picked up their location. Whichever way she moved the chain attached to the pendant, the tip of it stayed glued to the same spot. She smiled triumphantly, but in all her triumph, she felt exhausted.  
  
Soon enough Van came to the room and peaked his head inside to check on her progress. Hitomi turned her head to the sound of the door and gave him a successful nod. His eyes lit up and he ran over to the map she sat in front of. After staring at where Hitomi's pendant was currently locked over, Van ran out the door without another word.  
  
Hitomi watched him go and knew he went to tell Allen the place she located, so they could start flying in that direction. Knowing that walking to her room on her own was close to impossible, Hitomi sat at her chair and waited for Van to come back.  
  
Soon enough he showed up at the door again and told her they were on their way. Hitomi tried to stand up but her legs shook uncontrollably. She used her arms to push against the table to try and help her legs stand, but all her energy was drained. Before she fell back into her chair, Van rushed to her side and helped her up. Hitomi put her arm across his shoulders and used him for support, refusing to be carried.  
  
Their journey was slow but steady. Soon enough, Hitomi was in one of the cabins with a bed. She laid down and fell into a deep sleep almost instantly.  
  
In Hitomi's sleep, she did dream. It wasn't a vision or any premonition of the future. She floated in mid-air and stared at nothing in front of her. Well... she thought she was looking at nothing when suddenly the Vione came into view. She stared at it in curiosity and wondered why she was dreaming about it. Everything then turned black and a certain figure came into view.  
  
"Dilandau..." she said aloud.  
  
She knew what she had to do. If she wanted to come back to the Vione, she had to tell someone about the attack that was planned to happen the next day. If she tried, she might be able to talk to Dilandau through his dreams.  
  
Hitomi concentrated on Dilandau and called out to him. His figure that was so distant before walked right in front of her now dream self.  
  
"Hitomi?" He looked at her suspiciously. Was it really her? "Where am I?"  
  
"We are both in a dream but we are connected by my power. I don't have much strength left so I have to tell you something. Right now, my body is on the Crusade heading in your direction. A bunch of soldiers, Allen, and Van plan to attack you tomorrow." Hitomi explained to him.  
  
"But how do they even know where to find the Vione? We have an invincibility shield. No one can see us."  
  
"I have the power to see things with my mind Dilandau. I found you with my power."  
  
He interrupted her "So you gave away our position?! I knew you were a spy..."  
  
"Dilandau shut up for a second! I am not a spy! Why would I be warning you of a surprise attack if I were on Van's side?" Hitomi defended herself.  
  
Now Dilandau was silent. He spoke without thinking. She was right. But he didn't know why she would give away their position and then warn him about it.  
  
"So what's your reason for telling me this then?" Dilandau asked her.  
  
Hitomi thought for a few seconds and responded, "I want to come back to the Vione and fight this war on Zaibach's side. I... I'm... loosing my strength... I can't talk any longer. Please tell Folken!"  
  
Hitomi's link between her and Dilandau was then cut off. Back on the Vione, Dilandau slowly woke up. 'Was it a dream?' he thought. It seemed so real that she was talking to him. He knew Hitomi had strong powers and didn't waste any time in seeking Folken out to tell him of what Hitomi told him.  
  
~Hitomi~  
  
Back on the Crusade, Hitomi slept soundly until her body was fully recovered and she had all her energy back. When she squinted her eyes open, she noticed the sun was high in the sky and beams of light were stretching across the floor.  
  
The sun's position in the sky told her it was past noon. Whipping the blanket off her body, she swung her feet over the edge of the bunk and slipped her black boots on her feet. She took the first few steps toward the door unsteadily, but quickly regained her balance as she started to feel her body wake up.  
  
She walked down the narrow corridors of the Crusade in search of something to do. She decided to go to the bridge where she guessed everyone would be. Sure enough, Allen, Van, Gaddes, and much of the other crew were there. She walked over to Van who was standing by one of the many windows looking out into the world around them.  
  
"How much longer till we get there?" she questioned aloud.  
  
"We will get there around midday. I'm going to fly ahead on Escaflowne sooner though to make sure the way is clear." Van informed Hitomi.  
  
"Van... do you think I could come along? With you I mean... I want to help you out. I could tell you if there is anyone coming at you. I know the guymelefs won't be invisible because they are in flight mode... but I want to help out more... please... will you let me come?" She looked at Van with such a pleading look that he had to say yes.  
  
He also admitted to himself that she would be a big help when it came to fighting the guymelefs. If she could possibly see where each one would attack from next, then he could surely do his job in the attack successfully.  
  
Van said, "Sure Hitomi. You can ride with me on Escaflowne. But I'm going to have to bring you back aboard the Crusade before I land in the Vione. I don't want you to get in the middle of the fight that will take place there."  
  
Hitomi nodded her head and headed out the door.  
  
~The Vione~  
  
Everyone was preparing for the upcoming fight but many had their doubts that anything was even coming. When Dilandau had told Folken about what Hitomi had said and done, he didn't have any doubts that she was lying or Dilandau was just dreaming. He had the whole Vione preparing for battle and all the Dragonslayers guymelefs were being prepared. Zaibach would not go down so easily... and for this, they had Hitomi to thank.  
  
~The Crusade~  
  
The hours passed and soon enough the coordinates of the Vione's position slowly started to come closer. Van searched out Hitomi, and when he found her, they both headed to where Escaflowne was waiting. Van got into the cockpit and he helped Hitomi up to Escaflowne's shoulder.  
  
Van walked to the large door in the docking area. Once it opened, he yelled for Hitomi to hang on tight. He took one step out the door, and when Escaflowne cleared the doorway, Van swiftly transformed it to its dragon mode. He grabbed Hitomi's hand and pulled her up so she was behind him. Grabbing on to the back of Van's shirt, Hitomi silently prayed that Dilandau had gotten the message, and told Folken, who would hopefully prepare for the attack.  
  
Van flew around the Crusade and started to head straight in the direction the levi-ships were going. Escaflowne picked up speed and soon they were far ahead of the Crusade. Suddenly Hitomi felt her mind become frighteningly alert. She looked over Van's shoulder to see nothing... but out of nowhere, the Vione appeared before them. It had shut down its cloaking device.  
  
Hitomi could feel Van's surprise. He was clueless as to why the floating fortress had suddenly shut down all invincibility. Both snapped out of their trances when they saw some objects coming at them. Van instantly knew what they were... guymelefs... to be more specific... the Dragonslayers.  
  
They flew at each other with incredible speed and soon the Dragonslayers' guymelefs were attacking Escaflowne. Hitomi held onto Van tightly or else she would fly right off. Now was the time for her to think of how she was possibly going to get back to the Vione. This was the part of her plan that she couldn't think of. But Hitomi knew it would all come in time if she just waited.  
  
She watched the battle in her mind, and saw all of the blows that came from both sides. Van seemed to be winning but only barely. Then in her mind's eye, the red guymelef showed itself from the Vione. Changing into flight mode, Dilandau piloted his guymelef right towards Van and Hitomi. Van hadn't noticed the new armor coming towards them and was still fending off the others.  
  
Without warning, a vision flashed before Hitomi's eyes. That was the signal she was waiting for. As soon as the first part of the vision showed in real life, Hitomi took action. Van had maneuvered around one of the Dragonslayers and was going to strike him from behind. In Hitomi's vision, the Dragonslayer wouldn't have time to react and would be killed by Van's hand.  
  
She wasn't about to let that happen so Hitomi let go of Van's shirt for a split second and threw her arms around him, grabbing his forearms in the process. Hitomi pulled back with all her weight, making Van and his hands that were holding the two handles to control Escaflowne, get pulled backwards. Escaflowne rapidly changed it's direction and started to go straight up into the sky.  
  
Hitomi saw her chance and let go of Van altogether. She immediately fell backwards into the open air and away from Escaflowne. Van looked back at her with an unreadable expression but she could tell it showed the signs of betrayal. The air whipped around Hitomi very violently as she helplessly plummeted to the ground far beneath her.  
  
Her eyes were closed as she hoped her efforts were not in vain. But something happened that made her eyes snap open. A very familiar object wrapped around Hitomi's torso, but this time it wasn't as frightening. The ruthless current of air that she had been falling through just a moment ago seemingly stopped its speed, and now Hitomi found herself falling no more.  
  
Looking around her waist, Hitomi was surprised to see the liquid metal, which had been wrapped around her once before, there once again. The stream of metal that had reached out and caught her shortened and brought her closer to the guymelef. Hitomi's vision had become blurry during her fall but was now clearing up. Right in front of her, the red guymelef hovered in front of her, holding her body close to the armor.  
  
"Hitomi!" Dilandau yelled through the visor, "So it wasn't a dream after all."  
  
Dilandau sighed... he had so many questions to ask her but they had to wait. First he had to fight... questions and answers could come later.  
  
While the other Dragonslayers were fighting off a now recovered Van, Dilandau took the chance to fly back to the Vione and get Hitomi inside. He landed his guymelef in the open door, glanced at Hitomi again, and set her down on the metal floor. He turned around and flew out and back into battle. All the while Hitomi stood there and prayed for his and the Dragonslayers safe return. 


	14. Gotta Hurt

Sorry for the wait... but ever since I last updated, my days have been hell. My weekends were booked, I got a huge Spanish project last Thursday that's due next week, and to make things worse, my grandma died. So after missing school, going to the funeral, and doing a project, I haven't had any time to write. So sorry but I hope you all understand.  
  
(To make it up to you... Allen gets whopped!)  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne or any of the characters... well except for the ones I made.  
  
While the other Dragonslayers were fighting off a now recovered Van, Dilandau took the chance to fly back to the Vione and get Hitomi inside. He landed his guymelef in the open door, glanced at Hitomi again, and set her down on the metal floor. He turned around and flew out and back into battle. All the while Hitomi stood there and prayed for his and the Dragonslayers safe return.  
  
Chapter 14: Gotta Hurt  
  
The battle ensued in the air with three Dragonslayer armors battling Van. As Dilandau got closer, he could see levi-ships coming towards them. Without warning, one of them shot an onboard cannon straight towards his Dragonslayers. He watched with alarm as the shot just skimmed the arm of a guymelef.  
  
Dilandau yelled through the intercom, "Shesta! Miguel! Gatty! Get back to the Vione! I'll take care of Van..."  
  
With the order given, Dilandau's red guymelef flew straight towards Van who was trying to go after the Dragonslayers.  
  
"Where is Hitomi!" Van yelled.  
  
"Last time I checked, she was falling towards the ground." Dilandau coolly replied.  
  
Anger rose within the young king. "I saw you take her! Now where is she?!"  
  
"I'm not going to tell you. It's her choice of where she wants to be."  
  
"You didn't give her a choice! You took her!"  
  
Their battle continued on and the levi-ships went by them, not even doing a thing to stop their fighting.  
  
~Hitomi~  
  
Hitomi watched as the ships grew closer and as Van and Dilandau went at each other's throats. As she stared off into the distance, she felt a hand on her shoulder. Looking behind her, Folken stood with an expressionless face. After looking out for a moment, he turned his gaze to Hitomi and gave her a slight smile.  
  
"Thank you." Folken stated to her simply.  
  
"For what?" Hitomi looked at him curiously.  
  
She turned her attention back to the sky where the attack was coming from. Something dawned upon her. Looking around her inside the Vione, many soldiers stood ready to fight... she had brought this attack upon them. It was her fault she found where the Vione was positioned. 'It's all my fault... it's all my... fault...' she kept telling herself.  
  
Folken answered her previous question. "You warned us ahead of time that an attack was coming."  
  
"But I was the one who told them where you were! I brought the attack on... and you're thanking me?" Hitomi stated in disbelief.  
  
Folken shook his head. "You don't understand. It's much better that we are prepared for this... if by some other chance we were attacked without warning, we would be at a disadvantage in this war. But now we have a chance to get ahead and beat Austuria's army down. Thanks to you, we had time to get ready and counter with full force."  
  
"Oh... I hope you don't look at me as a traitor or..." she was cut off my Folken.  
  
"No... we don't see you as a traitor or spy or anything of that sort. Van took you with him against your own will." He paused for a second, "The ships are drawing nearer. Follow me."  
  
Hitomi went with Folken away from the docking area. They didn't go to far until Folken stopped in front of a doorway and told Hitomi to wait where she was. When he walked back out a minute later, he carried a long stick... but when the light shone upon it, Hitomi recognized it as her training weapon.  
  
Her eyes shinned as she gazed upon her weapon, but gave Folken a queer look. He handed the glaive, which still only had a dull metal blade, to Hitomi's waiting hands.  
  
"Will you assist us in our fight?" he asked her.  
  
"I... I really don't... think I can do it..."  
  
"Hitomi... I believe you can do it. You have worked very hard in practicing and you have already knocked a full grown man unconscious. I think you could disable some of the soldiers we are fighting against... but only if you wish to."  
  
Hitomi let out a sigh. 'Can I really do this? Can I fight in a real battle?'  
  
If Folken had enough confidence in her, then Hitomi would too. She nodded her head in agreement and followed Folken out the way they came.  
  
All soldiers stood ready to fight and were waiting till the opposing forces charged out of their ships. Austuria's ships slowed down and let the wide doors fly open, making a giant bridge between their ships and the Vione. Soldiers ran out instantly and steel clashed against steel.  
  
Screams could be heard coming from those who had just been stabbed and now lay dying. The docking area became so cluttered that it was hard to tell if the person you bumped into was an ally or foe. Some of the Zaibachian soldiers ran from the main battle to drag some of the opposing fighters away. Neither side was letting down and it seemed both sides were evenly matched.  
  
Outside, Van and Dilandau continued to duke it out. They had actually flown quite a distance away from the Vione, but either noticed. Both flew as high as the clouds and tried to sneak up on each other, but with Van being able to sense the attacks that were coming, he was able to move out of the way fast enough. Dilandau shot his crima-claw into the clouds to try and fish Van out. It worked many times and once it nearly knocked Van off Escaflowne. Their battle continued on just the same as the Vione's.  
  
Hitomi kept a distance away from the large group of fighters but when anyone was near her, or turned their back on her, Hitomi would lash out with her glaive. She would try to hit them in the head to possibly get them unconscious or sometimes go straight for their legs.  
  
Hitomi saw a soldier that was about to stab another in the back. She was going to yell but thought better of it and ran up to him. She swung her stick straight into the enemy's face making him drop his sword and stagger back a few steps. Hitomi didn't waste any time in whacking the backside of the man's head, making him black out instantly.  
  
Hitomi continued to do her best with the little training she had had, but she started to feel her muscles getting weary. The adrenaline was still pumping but her body begged for a rest.  
  
Just as she started to back away, Hitomi bumped into something and whipped around to face whomever it was. The opposing person did the same, but instead of getting ready to fight, he let down his sword.  
  
"Hitomi... what are you doing here? We have to get you out! Why didn't Van bring you back?"  
  
Allen... the blond haired knight stood in front of Hitomi and looked at her weirdly.  
  
"I'm not going back Allen. Didn't you see at all on the Crusade what happened?!" Hitomi yelled at him.  
  
"No... I was making sure everything was prepared and ready. Van was supposed to bring you right back to the Crusade once the way was clear for all the levi-ships."  
  
Hitomi laughed slightly to herself. "I had a slight change in plans. I'm on Zaibach's side Allen. Not yours. You will never be able to use me like a tool... ever again."  
  
Allen looked at her in disbelief. "But Hitomi... we would never use you like a too..."  
  
"Don't try and deny it! I heard you and Van speaking a few nights ago. I heard it all. And everything you have said about Zaibach being evil isn't true. You just say that to make others feel sympathy for you and help you win this stupid war! I'm not going to be pushed around by your words or requests any more! I am so tired of being a doll where everyone gets a turn to manipulate me! From now on I'll take care of myself and make my own decisions! So just back off!"  
  
Allen looked seriously stunned by Hitomi's words but recovered quickly.  
  
Then Allen said, "Don't make me take you by force Hitomi."  
  
"Try me."  
  
Hitomi's weariness all went down the drain and pure strength and the fighting spirit entered her blood. She grabbed her glaive firmly and lashed out at an unsuspecting Allen. He brought his sword up in just enough time to block the swing. Hitomi took a quick step back making Allen fall forward until he caught himself.  
  
Allen regained his stance and glared at Hitomi. "Are you sure you don't want to change your mind about just coming with me?"  
  
He was answered when Hitomi charged at him once again. Using the length of the pole, Hitomi pushed the end of the glaive straight toward his stomach. The unsharpened blade rammed right into Allen's gut. He flew back a few steps while one of his arms wrapped around his abdomen.  
  
Hitomi smiled victoriously, but it looked as if Allen wasn't about to give up. Trying to show his strength and not look weak compared to Hitomi, Allen stood up straight and tried not to show his pain. This time Allen charged at Hitomi, but she was ready and parried his attack. He tried with a slash straight down, but almost instantly Hitomi held her glaive with both hands above her head to block. Trying to push down with his weight, Allen would have never seen what was coming.  
  
One of Hitomi's hands let go of the stick making one side fall and along with it, Allen and his sword slid straight towards the ground. Allen didn't have time to react and fell on hands and knees to the ground. He used his sword to push himself up again, but he wouldn't stay up for long. Just as his knees left the ground, Hitomi swung the wood end of the stick underneath him. Using her left hand as a fulcrum, she pushed down on the opposite end of the glaive, like a lever, with her right hand causing the stick to strike right into Allen's crotch.  
  
His eyes became as big as dinner plates and his mouth opened wide, silently screaming. Hitomi took a step back as he fell straight onto the floor. Hitomi smiled in success.  
  
"Never underestimate me."  
  
But all thoughts of Hitomi's victory were wiped away when another vision overcame her.  
  
She was in the clouds and couldn't see anything around her. Then the clouds parted a little and the sun was directly in her eyes. She couldn't see anything but heard something rushing towards her. When Hitomi whipped around, she saw a red guymelef that was also facing the sun. When Hitomi looked forward again, she squinted her eyes against the harsh light and saw a reflection of pink.  
  
'That's energist stone on Escaflowne!' Hitomi thought to herself. 'Escaflowne's charging straight for the red guymelef... red guymelef? That's... that's Dilandau's!'  
  
Hitomi's vision snapped back to the battle on the Vione. She immediately played her vision over in her mind. 'If I was facing the sun... and Dilandau was too... then he won't be able to see Van coming! Shit! I need to do something!'  
  
Nothing came to mind as Hitomi frantically searched in her mind for some way to warn Dilandau. She couldn't reach him by his mind... she could only do that in sleep...  
  
She looked around her until something caught her eye. She never had used one before... but it was the only way. The only way she could get to Dilandau in time was to fly there. The fastest way to fly was by guymelef.  
  
Cliffhanger I know! I'll update ASAP. Hope you like it! R&R! 


	15. Save Him!

From the many, many, many reviews I got... and all the great response... I wrote this chapter faster than usual. I wrote on how Hitomi is controlling the guymelef... I don't have a clue how they really worked so I'm making everything up based on what I know. Hope you all like it!  
  
To Fanta: Don't worry... I'm not going to yell or say you're wrong or anything from your review. I would have liked to email you personally but there was no email address for you. I really appreciate your review. Yes... I do know that a glaive is super heavy and it takes years to beat expert swordsmen but for the sake of the story I couldn't just sit around for years to have Hitomi learn how to use a glaive. Plus I said she never really mastered it and when she was training, she got really tired really fast. And she really wasn't doing anything fancy, but swinging it around and just blocking... the basics.  
  
You also said something about how a character changes in such a short period of time. Well... that's what's so great about fanfiction. You can change a person's personality cause you have the power to change them. They don't have to make them stay the same as they were like in the series. You mentioned that Hitomi would probably take a lot of convincing to pick up a weapon... that might be true but with the circumstances that she was in (especially everyone always risking their life for her) she wanted to make a change and start protecting herself and grow up... not hide behind everyone. Another thing... with the battle with Allen... I knew very well about him being the best swordsman on Gaea and how she would never be able to beat him. Well, he knows Hitomi and underestimates her. That's his first mistake. He thinks she wouldn't even attack him. That's why his guard is let down 10 fold and she ends up beating him... especially with that last blow she delivered. I mean... who wouldn't stay down from that?  
  
In other words, thank you for your review. I did ask myself a lot of questions as I was writing the story like some of the things you commented on. I hope you still keep reading my fanfiction Fanta. Just email me if you have any more comments. (P.S. I really want to learn naginata. I would like to talk to you about that some more!)  
  
Disclaimer: I've said it 14 times and I'll say it again... I don't own Escaflowne or any characters except my own. Happy now?  
  
She looked around her until something caught her eye. She never had used one before... but it was the only way. The only way she could get to Dilandau in time was to fly there. The fastest way to fly was by guymelef.  
  
Chapter 15: Save him!  
  
Hitomi didn't waste any time and sprinted over to one of the Dragonslayers' guymelefs closest to the opening of the docks. She dropped her glaive on the way because right now it would be useless. Thankfully the cockpit was open, and she clambered into it. Folken turned just in time to spot her jumping into it.  
  
"Hitomi! What are you doing?!" Folken yelled.  
  
But over all of the noise, Hitomi didn't hear a word he said. She was seated inside the guymelef looking around her, trying to figure out how to work it. Searching around with her hands near the opening, Hitomi found a medium sized button. She pressed it hoping it would close the cockpit door. Hitomi looked forward only to see an arrow flying towards her head, but it only struck the outside armor of the guymelef. The mecha was now shut and the door blocked the arrow from ever reaching inside.  
  
Then one thought struck her mind. 'Why am I doing this?'  
  
Hitomi froze in place... why was she jumping in this huge armor that she had never even been inside or even touched before?  
  
Her inner voice answered her. 'Because he has saved you... multiple times...'  
  
'But why did he save me? I thought he wanted to kill me from the start. Why did this all happen?!' Hitomi repeated these questions to her inner thoughts, and she couldn't push them aside.  
  
'I have to save him. I'm against Van and the others now... and I am indebted to Dilandau... its what I have to do. I can't just stand here and watch Van kill any more people!'  
  
Hitomi's gaze shot forward. She made her choice and she wouldn't regret it. She would now take the consequences... whatever they might be.  
  
Now she sat inside the mecha, searching around with her hands, trying to work with the light that was peeking through the small opening in the visor. Her hands found what seemed to be slots for the arms and she placed her own arms through them. At the end of the arm slots, she could feel triggers and figure that they were for her weapons. Hitomi then slid her feet through some restraints but wondered what she had to do next. Before she could even look around, she felt something surround her body. It went all the way up to her chin and Hitomi started to panic. But as she sat in the guymelef and realized she could still breathe, she relaxed a bit. Hitomi prayed it wouldn't rise any further and put all her determination forward to get the guymelef moving.  
  
She lifted one of her feet to see if the restraints would move with the motion. As soon as she elevated her foot a little, the guymelef's foot also raised but caused it to become unbalanced. Feeling the guymelef start to fall forward a little, she threw her foot back down. The inside shook a little and Hitomi tried to compose herself. She once again tried to lift her foot, but this time she pushed forward against the harness and felt that she was moving forward. She started to take baby steps, stumbling here and there, all the time soldiers ran out of her way to prevent from being crushed under its huge feet.  
  
It seemed forever until she reached the open doorway leading to free sky.  
  
"How the hell does this thing fly?!" she screamed.  
  
Suddenly she heard a coming from inside the guymelef.  
  
"Hitomi, what are you doing?! And where are you going with that guymelef?" Folken's voice sounded over the intercom.  
  
Hitomi answered with urgency in her voice, "I can't explain now! Folken... can you get a hold of Dilandau on the intercom?"  
  
"No... he is too far away from the Vione. It won't reach him... why?"  
  
"Please just tell me how to work this!" Hitomi started to get impatient.  
  
"Get out of that guymelef now Hitomi. That's an order. You've never had any experience with one of them before."  
  
Starting to feel that she had little time left, Hitomi did the unthinkable. She wasn't about to listen to Folken when she knew Dilandau would be killed. So looking forward, she took the last few step toward the wide door, looked down, and stepped right off the edge, falling to the ground and an incredible speed.  
  
Folken realized this and then shouted into the intercom. "Put your legs together and push your toes down! Quickly!"  
  
Hitomi did as he said and felt the guymelef shift a little. The air that she felt rushing into the cockpit before stopped immediately. She started to breath heavily, not believing what she had just done. What if the guymelef was broken? What if it didn't fly? She would have died.  
  
'Geez... when that adrenaline kicks in, I do some crazy things.' she thought to herself.  
  
But now Hitomi had no clue how to make the guymelef actually fly forward, but the same voice from before answered her mind's question before she had time to inquire.  
  
"I guess there is no stopping you Hitomi. You better had a good reason for this." Folken's fuzzy voice came over the inside speaker, "Flying takes getting used to. If you want to raise your altitude, you want to push down with your toes more and if you want to descend, you need to raise your toes. But remember, once your feet are parallel to the ground, your flying mode will shut down and you will fall to the ground unless you can reinitiate it again in time. To fly forward, just lean with your body while pressing with your feet to give you power. Your weapo..."  
  
But he was cut off when Hitomi gave him quick thanks and flew off rather shakily into the distance. Keeping steady in the air became difficult for Hitomi and as she searched with her mind to find Dilandau, her breathing started to become labored. She was getting tired very rapidly. Not only was it from piloting the guymelef but also from the fighting she had just previously done. Soon enough, she had a direct lock on Dilandau and now tried to fly as fast as she could toward him. She flew higher and higher into the sky and passed a layer of clouds. The air became thinner and there was less oxygen in the air.  
  
Flying quite some time like that, Hitomi could feel Dilandau's presence very strongly now. She flew above another layer of clouds and instantly saw the sun, which blinded her vision temporarily. The guymelef hovered there while she looked from side to side, trying to find any trace of Dilandau's red guymelef. To her right, she saw his armor facing the sun, and in front of him, the clouds stirred as an object moved through them. A little of Escaflowne peered above the clouds with Van riding on it's back.  
  
Seeing this in her vision put Hitomi into full action. She thrust her toes down and pushed herself forward to make the guymelef use as much power it could to fly straight for Dilandau. Van was gaining on the unsuspecting Dilandau faster and faster.  
  
'Shit! I'm not going to make it!' she cursed to herself.  
  
~Dilandau~  
  
The sun blared right through his visor, and he couldn't see a thing. Van had been diving into the clouds during their battle and would try and attack Dilandau by surprise. But so far all his efforts had been in vain. Now the sun was in his eyes from popping out of a layer of clouds, and black dots caused by the intense light impaired his vision. He only let his guard down for a few seconds but by what he remembered, so many things had happened in that short amount of time.  
  
He remembered his name being yelled out from someone to his left. Then her heard a battle cry in front of him. A hard object hit his guymelef with great intensity from where he heard his name. A great screeching sound of metal piercing metal resounded around him, but he didn't feel a thing. He quickly turned his red guymelef around to face the cause and was greeted by one of his Dragonslayers' guymelefs. A sword jutted out from its left side and on the other end of the sword was Escaflowne.  
  
Just then his intercom started to crackle. "Dilandau..."  
  
A weak voice sounded in his guymelef but her recognized it. It wasn't one of his Dragonslayers... it was a woman... it was... Hitomi...  
  
*****A/N*****  
  
Sorry it was a little short. I wanted to end it there for chapter purposes... you know... keeping all the ideas together. Hope you all liked it! I won't be writing for about a week from today... I have finals coming up and all of our teachers and trying to finish things up and I need to study. Once summer break comes though I will write a lot and hopefully finish the story. Thanks for everyone who has read! Please remember to R&R! And sorry for any grammar mistakes! I didn't have too much time to read it over. 


	16. Wounded

Hio!! Well, lets just say finals are over and I'm going to not ramble any further!  
  
Disclaimer: Don't make me mad by suing me! Especially since I'm finally on summer break! So I will tell you that I don't own Escaflowne or anything related to it... yeah...  
  
Just then his intercom started to crackle. "Dilandau..."  
  
A weak voice sounded in his guymelef but he recognized it. It wasn't one of his Dragonslayers... it was a woman... it was... Hitomi...  
  
Chapter 16: Wounded  
  
At first Dilandau thought his ears were deceiving him. Did Hitomi's voice just come from the communicator? He just sat there in his guymelef looking back at where he just previously floated... and instead of him on the end of Escaflowne's sword, it was the blue guymelef that knocked him out of the way.  
  
Van looked just as surprised as Dilandau. He had been concentrating on sneaking up on Dilandau to deliver the final blow that he never noticed the other guymelef flying right towards him. Now liquid metal flowed from the piercing, but the silver color it should have all been became tainted with red.  
  
The sword, which was still protruding from the armor, was finally slid out when Van pulled Escaflowne back in disbelief. The voice he heard... sounded so familiar... but it couldn't be...  
  
"Hitomi?" Van called out faintly.  
  
Hitomi could barely hear anything around her though. She had pushed Dilandau out of the way in time but got seriously hurt by her actions. The giant sword that pierced through the armor had been so close to severing her body into 2 pieces. She was lucky enough to have been in such a position that it sliced her left side. It wasn't a deep wound, but the blood didn't seem to want to slow its escape from her body.  
  
Hitomi's blood mixed with the liquid metal surrounding her, which was also draining from its guymelef's encasing. Her strength started to leave her and the simple task of keeping her feet together to keep the guymelef in the air became frustratingly hard. The world around her was blurring and all the might she held to stay conscious failed. Her feet went limp and the guymelef immediately started to fall to the ground.  
  
Dilandau saw this immediately and charged his own armor towards Hitomi's, which was now plummeting to the ground. He caught up with her in no time at all and made a crima-claw in both hands to go under the guymelef's arms. When they were wrapped under its arms, Dilandau slowed both their guymelefs from falling. Careful not to jerk the guymelef, Dilandau flew back to the Vione, giving once last glance at a very stunned Van.  
  
'Our fight will continue later Fanel...' Dilandau mindlessly told himself.  
  
Van just floated there with Escaflowne under his feet as he stared off in the distance.  
  
"What have I done?" he asked himself. "What if I killed her? What if that really was Hitomi?!"  
  
He looked at Escaflowne's blade where a little blood on the edge still remained. Van stood there in shock...  
  
'That was supposed to be Dilandau's blood on the blade...' he reminded himself.  
  
The scene that happened in only a few seconds kept replaying over and over in his head... and the same voice of Hitomi was heard each time as it repeated before his eyes. Right before his sword went through Dilandau, another guymelef appeared with the person inside screaming Dilandau's name. The voice registered in his mind instantly. It was the voice of a person whom he had betrayed... a person who had trusted him, but in the end, received no respect and had been used.  
  
Van swore he could almost feel the pain of the wound he inflicted. The air blew so gently around him, but Van wasn't paying any attention to anything around him. He stayed in this dreamlike state for quite a while and was suddenly woken when the Crusade called through his communicator. His head snapped up and out of the corner of his eye, he saw the Crusade, but with only one ship behind it.  
  
'Zaibach must have destroyed or captured the other ship during the fight.' he thought to himself.  
  
Van took a deep breath of the air around him, but his throat seemed to clench up, making the air seem thin. He flew back to the levi-ships and landed inside. Van deftly jumped out of Escaflowne and slowly walked back to a room to try and get some sleep. But just after he jumped off Escaflowne's knee, Allen was walking toward him... looking as if he was trying to hold back any pain he was in.  
  
"Van! What happened? Why was Hitomi on the Vione? I thought she was with you!" Allen was about to ask even more when Van just held his hand up to silence him.  
  
"It's a long story... but to put it shortly... she heard us talking that one night. Hitomi's against us now... she's chosen her own side in this war Allen... she is now our enemy." Van put it plainly.  
  
"What? How do you know? Van... Zaibach is forcing her to help them! We have to bring her back!"  
  
"Allen!" Van was starting to get frustrated. "What don't you understand about what I'm telling you?! She was on the Vione because she jumped off Escaflowne on purpose! Then I stabbed her when she pushed Dilandau's guymelef out of the way!"  
  
Van's voice seemed to crack after he said it. He didn't mean for it to come out so harsh. Since Van had told Allen all he needed to know, Van pushed his way past a stunned Allen and stormed off towards one of the rooms.  
  
He sat down on one of the bunks and stared at the ground. Closing his eyes, Van rested his elbows on his knees and his head in his hands. He sat there and silently prayed.  
  
'Hitomi... I'm so sorry... Please don't die... just don't die!' Van felt a few tears form at his eyes and let them fall silently to the ground. For once in a long time, Van felt disgusted with himself for having hurt someone... even if now they were his enemy.  
  
~Dilandau~  
  
It seemed like eternity till the Vione was in Dilandau's sites again. It looked like the other army had retreated and the battle was over... for now. Dilandau looked down at the guymelef he was carrying and knew a new battle was to come... a battle of life or death.  
  
Dilandau's guymelef landed inside the Vione, placing Hitomi's against a wall. He jumped out of his own, not caring where it was placed and jumped up to the opening of Hitomi's cockpit. He opened the damaged guymelef and what he saw shocked him.  
  
Hitomi was sitting inside, one hand loosely clung to her lower left side. Blood soaked her shirt and covered her hand. Her face looked pale and showed with pain. He carefully reached in to pull her free from the guymelef and lifted her out. Dilandau held her in his arms and carefully dropped to the floor.  
  
She stirred a little but did not open her eyes. The physicians that were helping the wounded had most of the injured gone, but the dead bodies were still littering the floor. But once the uninjured saw Dilandau fly in with an injured melef, they ran to get a stretcher. It was brought in right when Dilandau landed on the floor with the girl in his arms.  
  
Walking over the stretcher, Dilandau laid Hitomi down. Just as he placed her onto it, her eyes slowly peeked open. Both looked into each other's eyes and a faint smile crossed Hitomi's features.  
  
She just barely made out in a whisper, "I made it in time..." and she fell into unconsciousness.  
  
~A few days later~  
  
"Folken, how's her condition?"  
  
After Hitomi had been wounded, she was immediately given medical attention by the doctors on the Vione.  
  
"We're still not sure... she's still unstable to say anything for sure. Only time will tell."  
  
Dilandau nodded his head at Folken. Hitomi's state for the past few days had been the same. The enormous amount of blood she lost made everyone doubt she would even make it through the first night. Many were greatly surprised to still see her hanging on to life.  
  
Hitomi would stop breathing for short periods of time, but her body fought and forced her lungs to work again and again. She was truly a fighter, but Folken always checked on the young seer throughout the day to see if she had improved any.  
  
Surprisingly none of their technology could help her recover faster. At first, they only patched up her wound and stopped the bleeding. Now Hitomi lie in the infirmary, struggling to stay alive. She sometimes stirred in her sleep but never did she open her eyes. All they could do is sit and wait to see how her body would handle on its own.  
  
The Vione was now back to normal and the other soldiers that were injured in battle started to move around again. Everyone but one person.  
  
Dilandau sat in his chair looking at all his Dragonslayers. All of them knew why Dilandau hadn't been himself lately. The girl from the Mystic Moon was still troubling his mind.  
  
'Why did she save me? Why would she throw away her life to save mine?' Dilandau's mind couldn't comprehend anything Hitomi had done for him. He was lost in his thoughts and he would constantly blame himself for her condition.  
  
'If I had been more aware of that bastard Van... than Hitomi wouldn't be hurt. Damnit! She better not die... cause I don't want to carry the blame!'  
  
As the days passed by, Hitomi seemed to look better day-by-day. The color of her skin darkened and was no longer a ghostly pale white. The gash in her side started to heal more fully and her breathing and heartbeat returned to normal. With Hitomi finally starting to nurse back to health, the doctors who had taken care of her, Folken, and surprising Dilandau along with the Dragonslayers all let out a long held breath.  
  
Back in the infirmary, Hitomi lay on one of the beds, her torso wrapped in bandages, the rest of her body covered by a blanket. She hadn't opened her eyes since she was last pulled out of the guymelef, but she occasionally stirred in her extensive sleep.  
  
Finally consciousness was coming back to her. Her eyelids felt heavy and as her mind became aware of everything around her, dizziness overcame her. The immense amount of blood lost still made Hitomi weak and her throat felt coarse and dry. Her head hurt and she groaned slightly as she felt most of the numbness her body had been in disappear into pain. One of the doctors heard her and rushed to her bed.  
  
"Miss... can you hear me?" the doctor asked her in a hushed voice.  
  
Hitomi tried to speak but found that she could only make the sound of air coming through her throat. So instead of trying to speak she nodded her head, but found that this only made the world around her spin even more. The doctor smiled slightly and almost looked... relieved. He walked away, but Hitomi didn't see him go out the door because she closed her eyes again and fell asleep. As soon as her eyes were closed though, she heard someone calling her name.  
  
"Hitomi? Hitomi can you hear me?"  
  
She opened her eyes to find herself looking right at Folken.  
  
Hitomi managed to use her voice, "Folken? Where am I?"  
  
"You're in the infirmary on the Vione. Don't worry... you seem to be healing well. You shouldn't move too much or that wound will reopen." Folken told her.  
  
Hitomi then remembered the slash to her side and all her memories came rushing back to her. She closed her eyes again and took a deep breath of air. Remembering how dry her throat was, she started to cough weakly. Folken smiled sympathetically at her, and helped her into a sitting position on the bed, moving slowly so not to open her wound again. A glass of water was brought to her and she drank a few sips slowly but steadily.  
  
Folken was glad to see her awake again but said he had to go. Watching him leave, she scooted back under the covers and lay down in the bed. Her wound still hurt even if she made the slightest movement so she found a comfortable position and fell asleep once more.  
  
Dilandau had found out later that day that Hitomi had woken up. He felt in a sense relieved, but decided against going and asking her all the questions that were on his mind. She was still probably extremely weak and needed some actual sleep.  
  
It wasn't till a few days later when Hitomi had more energy that she got a few visitors.  
  
"Miss Hitomi? Can we come in?"  
  
A boy with light brown hair poked his head into the doorway.  
  
"Uhh... yeah... sure... you can come in." Hitomi told him.  
  
He opened the door and two other boys that looked the same age as him walked in behind.  
  
"Miss Hitomi..." but before he could finish, Hitomi cut him off.  
  
"Please don't call me that... just Hitomi is fine."  
  
(AN: I refer to Chesta as Shesta... I prefer Shesta... if anyone knows its wrong then tell me.)  
  
"Alright... Hitomi... I'm Gatty. This is Shesta and the one next to him is Miguel." Gatty told her.  
  
"You're all Dragonslayers... aren't you?" Hitomi asked.  
  
"Yes. I guess our armor gives it away." Gatty chuckled slightly, "Well... the reason we are here is because we wished to thank you."  
  
"You want to thank me? For what?" Hitomi looked at them confused.  
  
"Actually Shesta here wanted to thank you. Go on Shesta... don't be so shy." Gatty nudged Shesta forward.  
  
"Ummm... thank you Miss Hitomi. Thank you for saving my life." he said in a whisper.  
  
Hitomi still looked at him like she had no idea of what he was talking about. Since Gatty saw that Shesta wasn't going to explain he jumped in.  
  
"About a week ago when the battle first started, Miguel, Shesta, and I went out in our guymelefs to fight Escaflowne. Shesta was about to get struck from behind and we weren't able to warn him in time. We all thought that that was going to be the end of him but then we saw you on the back of Escaflowne. We both saw how you changed Escaflowne's direction. If you hadn't done that... then Shesta wouldn't be standing here right now."  
  
Hitomi now knew what they were talking about but looked down at her bed. "I just couldn't let Van kill anymore people. It was nothing really."  
  
Gatty smiled at her when Hitomi took her gaze off the blanket. "We have to go now. We're all glad to see you alive. For everything that you have done for us... it would have been horrible to see you die. Regain your energy soon! Then you can train with us!"  
  
With that, the three Dragonslayers walked out of the infirmary. Hitomi sighed... yes... she did hope to recover sooner. She felt dirty and all cramped up from sleeping and sitting on the infirmary bed for nearly a week. Until that time, she could only hope that the decision she had made in this war would be a good one.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
And that's it for chapter 16! I'm leaving for Ocean City, Maryland tomorrow. It's a wonderful 12 hour drive there and I'll probably just write some of chapter 17 during the car ride... but I won't have access to internet or computer while there... and I'm going to be there till next Saturday. That means no updates for about... 2 weeks... really sorry if you hate to wait but I'm really getting some writer's block now that I've written about everything I've planned out. I know I'll think of some way to end the story, but until then you will just have to wait. I want to thank everyone again for all their reviews and support! And if you like Inuyasha and you like vampire fanfictions, I'm going to be writing one with a friend of mine (she's coming on the trip to Ocean City). That's what I'm going to be writing during the trip! So check it out when I actually get a chapter posted... but don't start looking till I have this next chapter posted... it will probably take me awhile. Thanks everyone! And please don't forget to review! 


	17. Q&A

Happy early 4th of July everyone! I'm back and now I'm nice and bronze from the sun, and refreshed with ideas! The day I got back I checked my email, and I couldn't believe the awesome reviews I got... pretty much they just pushed me to write the next chapter sooner than expected! Well... maybe by only a few days. Enjoy!  
  
To Sarina Fannel: Ahh... thanks so much for the comment... * blushes * ... you really think it's one of the best? That really made me smile! Thanks!  
  
To chichi: It's ok that you don't update every chapter... sometimes we all are bad when it comes to reviewing... hey even I forget sometimes! Thanks for reviewing for this chapter!  
  
To Feye Morgan: Thanks for clearing up the Shesta/Chesta thing! I like Shesta more... so it's staying!  
  
To Blue Demon: Don't worry... hopefully my writer's block 'piffled off'... never knew that word exsisted... but I updated so I guess it did!  
  
To Ronin_Mage: Don't worry... I'm planning to put your 'hint' in sometime... I'll work it in soon! Thanks for all your comments... they made me very happy and excited to know that you really think my story is that good! Thanks!  
  
To Young Hitomi: Don't worry... I wasn't planning on making it a lemon. Just cute love and blah blah blah... ummm... I don't want to give anything away so you will just have to read! (  
  
Disclaimer: Ok... ok... enough with the rambling... I don't own anything related to or affiliated with Escaflowne in any shape, way, or form. Except for my characters... if you want them... you have to get permission from me!  
  
With that, the three Dragonslayers walked out of the infirmary. Hitomi sighed... yes... she did hope to recover sooner. She felt dirty and all cramped up from sleeping and sitting on the infirmary bed for nearly a week. Until that time, she could only hope that the decision she had made in this war would be a good one.  
  
Chapter 17: Q&A  
  
It was still the same day that the three Dragonslayers had come to thank Hitomi and a few hours had gone by since. A nurse that had been caring for her the time she had been there walked over to her with a tray of gauze, ointment, and a washcloth with a bowl of warm water. Knowing it was time to change the bandage, Hitomi pushed the sheets off her stomach to reveal the gauze that were wrapped around her.  
  
The nurse started to unwrap the gauze from Hitomi's abdomen until a knock came from the door. Since Hitomi only had her bra on, she pulled the covers back over her shoulders to cover herself. The nurse walked to the door and opened it.  
  
A meek voice sounded from behind the door, "Umm... is Hitomi awake?"  
  
"Yes she is but she cannot see anyone right now." The nurse answered the girl.  
  
That voice... "Wait! Masumi is that you?" Hitomi yelled from her bed.  
  
"Do you know this girl Hitomi?" the nurse asked from the doorway.  
  
Masumi's head appeared when the door was opened a little more and her question was answered once she ran to Hitomi's bed without permission. Masumi sat down on the edge of the mattress, and being cautious of Hitomi's wound, she gave Hitomi a thankful hug.  
  
"When I heard what happened to you, I was so worried and tried to come visit, but every time I came you were asleep. I came rushing here when I heard you were awake and seemed to be doing well." Masumi said as she broke the hug.  
  
Hitomi smiled at her. "Sorry I worried you. My wound seems to be healing... and I think my blood is coming back to its normal level. I'll still be a little weak though for about a month."  
  
The nurse that was tending to Hitomi walked back over to her bed and gave Masumi a scolding look. Hitomi gave her friend an apologetic look and Masumi understood. Standing up from her sitting position on the bed, Masumi walked to the door and left without another word.  
  
The nurse then looked to Hitomi to try and tell her that they needed to change the bandage. She threw off her covers once again and the nurse got started with undoing the gauze that was wrapped around her abdomen. Once it was all removed, Hitomi waited for the patch that was against the gash to be removed.  
  
When she first received her wound, they had to change the patch more often to make sure it was clean and healing correctly. It hurt when they would take off the bandage... the cut was still unhealed and any movement of the skin would cause her pain. She was lucky enough that no organs had been damaged, but still the blood loss was life threatening.  
  
The patch was removed and now that her sliced side was nearly healed, it didn't nearly hurt as much as it did before. A stinging liquid, probably something similar to alcohol, was dabbed against the wound. Hitomi winced once it touched, but didn't say anything because she knew it was necessary. A new bandage was placed back against her skin and the nurse wrapped new gauze around it.  
  
She was given a white shirt that she could slip on to cover herself... hiding under the covers was not how she wanted to stay all day. Hitomi carefully lifted her arms and the shirt was pulled over her head.  
  
Now that the nurse was done caring to Hitomi, she left her to care for some other patients in the infirmary. Again Hitomi was left alone and bored.  
  
'There's nothing to do here... and when something like walking will reopen my cut, there is nothing to do but sit here in this lousy bed, sleep, or just stare at the ceiling.' Hitomi told herself.  
  
She wasn't feeling tired like she was a week ago, so she decided to stare at the ceiling. The whole day went by like that... she received no more visitors and soon enough, she fell asleep from boredom.  
  
The next morning, Hitomi thought that this day would be the same as yesterdays. It was well past noon and she had already eaten a meal. Her bandage didn't need to be changed and that was a good sign. Soon enough, her wound would be totally closed and she would be released.  
  
The day was going by slowly, and even the infirmary was empty... with the exception of her. The nurse was cleaning around the room and the doctors were not there. She gazed out the window that sat near her bed, and watched all the clouds as they floated past them. It was bright outside, above the clouds, and the whole peacefulness of it seemed to put Hitomi in a trance.  
  
She didn't even notice when a knock came at the infirmary door. The nurse answered it and the person told her something. She gave a slight bow and left the room. The person who knocked at the door walked fully into the room and shut the door behind him.  
  
Hitomi finally broke her gaze from the window as she heard heavy boots start to walk across the floor. She turned her head to find out whom the footsteps belonged to, but what she found surprised her.  
  
"Dilandau..." she whispered.  
  
It was in fact Dilandau. For the first time since Hitomi had been injured, this was the first time he came to visit her. He might have come sooner, but during the week, he was trying to find answers he didn't have to questions that were haunting his mind. He started to feel emotions he never felt before, trying to pin point what they were and why he started to feel that way. He started to feel frightened... he was worried Hitomi might not have made it. He also started to feel angry with himself... angry for not being a better soldier or more alert to his surroundings to have prevented Van from hurting anyone. And mostly he felt confused. Hitomi was the last person he would ever expect to jump into drastic decisions and to put their own life on the line for another. But she just kept on surprising him with her choices. She was strong, and had the will to survive, but she felt passion for others.  
  
As he neared her, her expression did not change. Her eyes glimmered for she was happy she finally had another visitor, but the muscles in Hitomi's face showed that she was surprised he had come to see her.  
  
Dilandau walked past the foot of her bed and towards the window. Truly he didn't know what to say so he just stared out the window. He could tell she was getting a little uncomfortable with the silence so he turned his head slightly to look at her. She had the covers pulled around her waist and her hair looked like a mess. The slight paleness of her skin showed the lack of blood that still resided in her body but also proved she had been in this room for the whole week.  
  
"How are you feeling?" he asked in a low calm voice.  
  
"I'm better... still hurts a little when I move though..." Hitomi replied. "My wound is nearly healed now."  
  
His head turned back towards the window, almost as if in a daze. "You know it will scar..." Dilandau's hand found the scar on his own face and ran two fingers across it absentmindedly.  
  
Hitomi looked down at her bed, knowing she had been the cause of that, but before she could put all the guilt down on herself, Dilandau's voice interrupted her thinking.  
  
"You know this scar isn't your fault. If you remember, once you called out to warn Van, he whirled around and blocked my blow with his sheath. We were both totally aware of each other then. He is the only one responsible for this," he said as he lightly patted his cheek.  
  
Hitomi lifted her gaze to see that Dilandau had now pulled over a simple armchair to her bedside and was sitting in it. She looked into his eyes and could tell that he wasn't lying. No hatred towards her lie in those eyes... only a confusion that she was causing.  
  
Dilandau's questions lingered in his mind, but he felt that hey could linger no more. "Hitomi... why did you warn us about the attack? Why did you come back? I thought you sided with Fanel and Schezar."  
  
Hitomi was shocked at straight forwardness on his questions, but she had to give him honest answers.  
  
"Uhh..." she thought for a moment. "Well I warned you on the attack because... I was betrayed by the people I thought were my friends... and by the person I thought I loved."  
  
Deep sadness possessed her eyes and it took all she had to not cry. She turned her head to look away. "I felt so betrayed... I wouldn't let them use me just so they could win a stupid war!" she suddenly shouted.  
  
Her head shot up and instead of sorrow, anger flared in her deep green eyes. "I located where the Vione was and told Allen. Then I warned you... that was the only way I could think of to get back here. I've tried to go back home... but I can't. So the only place left for me to turn was to Zaibach. Van tried to fill my head with all of his beliefs, always saying 'Zaibach is evil; Zaibach is the enemy. They're murderers.' But is this not war? Isn't everyone really a murderer? Zaibach isn't the only country who has killed!"  
  
Dilandau sat listening to Hitomi's every word. She wasn't ignorant at all... the words she spoke were true... but one thing still lingered in his mind.  
  
He spoke. "I see your point, but I still have one question. Why did you put your own life in danger and knock me out of the way when Van and me were fighting? Why did you take the blow meant for me?"  
  
Hitomi didn't expect him to ask this so quickly, so she sat (What else could she do... pace?) and thought about it.  
  
'Now that I think about it... why did I save Dilandau? Was it just my reaction to the vision I had? Was my refusal to let my vision come true the reason I jumped into making my choice?' her face contorted different emotions as she thought. 'No... I know that I didn't just save him because of my vision. But what is it? He did save my life a few times... but... was I repaying him?'  
  
Dilandau patiently waited for Hitomi to answer... although inside he just wanted to demand something out of her. She looked into his eyes and gave him an honest answer. "I really don't know. I'm not even sure myself."  
  
She could tell that was not what Dilandau wanted to hear, but he kept his cool and just gave off a sigh. 'Even I don't have the answers to all my questions... and I cannot expect her to have them either.'  
  
Hitomi turned her gaze to the window until Dilandau spoke again. "Are you still willing to train with the glaive after you're healed?"  
  
She looked back at him with the excited eyes of a child. She nodded her head eagerly and the corners of his mouth twitched up slightly.  
  
'Is he... smiling?' Hitomi asked herself.  
  
"As soon as you gain your strength back, would you like to train as a Dragonslayer?" he asked her quietly.  
  
Hitomi looked at him almost unbelievingly. "You want me to become... a Dragonslayer?"  
  
"Actually, you have a choice. You can become a Dragonslayer, you can become like any other average soldier here, or you can just sit around and be nothing."  
  
She really didn't need much time to decide. Sitting around and doing nothing was what she had experienced for the past week and it was about to drive her mad. The want to learn more on how to use her weapon and to get better at it was pushing her. Her decision was made without a second thought.  
  
"Yes... I want to become one of your Dragonslayers," she told him while smiling.  
  
He stood up from the chair he was in and nodded at her once more. The smile she wore... it seemed to push the 'psycho-pyromaniac' part of him away. He felt... at peace in a way. After talking with her, a weight seemed to lift from his shoulders. Everything that was bothering him over the week was now gone from his mind.  
  
Dilandau walked towards the door of the infirmary, but turned his head slightly just so he could see her out of the corner of his eye.  
  
"Get healed soon... you have a lot of training to do..." and with that he left the room and shut the door softly behind him.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Uhh... short... but I'm keeping ideas together. Sorry if you all were hoping for a little romance, but I'm slowly having them come together and start to feel the emotion. I hate when they just jump into each other's arms, have a passionate kiss, and then wonder what the hell they were doing. Not my style. But keep posted... it will be here soon enough! I can tell you now that it's nearing the end of the story... I have no clue how many more chapters... but you will have to wait and see.  
  
Oh... if you want to have a really good laugh, download the song called 'I'm the Man' by Anthrax (Look for the 'def uncensored version'). Then look up the lyrics and follow along in the song. I couldn't stop laughing the first time I heard it... my brother got it... trust me... it will crack you up!  
  
Please don't forget to R&R! 


	18. Feelings of Peace

Wow... I can't believe this is nearly at 200 reviews! I'm going to cry! (J/K) Thanks for everyone reviewing and all the support!  
  
Disclaimer: Can I say it any other way? I don't own Escaflowne... so don't sue me.  
  
Van: Yeah! I own Escaflowne!  
  
MysticalDreamer: You dope! I'm not talking about your guymelef! The series! Sigh  
  
Dilandau walked towards the door of the infirmary, but turned his head slightly just so he could see her out of the corner of his eye.  
  
"Get healed soon... you have a lot of training to do..." and with that he left the room and shut the door softly behind him.  
  
Chapter 18: Feelings of Peace  
  
The day after Dilandau had visited Hitomi, she started to try and walk again. Being bed stricken for over a week, and having a major blood loss left Hitomi's muscles in a weakened state. One of the stronger doctors helped her to her feet to get her walking again. She wobbled a lot and got tired easily, but she had to take it slowly. A few times she got out of bed herself and walked towards the window, then she would try to walk more around the room.  
  
About the fourth day of her 'physical therapy', Hitomi was able to walk around with no help. She stumbled here and there, but no longer feeling dizzy, Hitomi could at least make it around on her own. She no longer needed her whole waist wrapped in bandages, but her wound was still slightly sensitive. It was fully closed and the scar was starting to form... it would be a constant reminder of what had happened.  
  
Hitomi was released from the infirmary the next day. The nurse was sure that as long as she didn't push herself, she would be back to normal in about another week. She was escorted back to her room, which she hadn't been in for a while, and found that everything was still there and in the places she had left them.  
  
'This will be my new home... at least until I can find a way back to Earth...' she thought.  
  
It was still early in the day so Hitomi went and took a bath. The only thing she had gotten in the infirmary was a piece of wet cloth rubbed across her skin and her hair had been forgotten. Sinking into the warm water was very relaxing and it seemed to wash off all the grim and blood from her body. She washed herself from head to toe but when she encountered the slash in her side, she was especially careful.  
  
(Ever notice how anime characters never had to shave? I wish I never had to shave...-_-')  
  
Leaving the sanctuary of the hot steamy bathroom, she walked into her bedroom only to see that on her bed, a new outfit awaited her.  
  
'Do the seamstresses ever sleep around here?' she asked herself.  
  
What she found fascinated her. The top looked like a Chinese shirt with the frog clasps on the sides... but it was sleeveless. At the waistline, it looked like a long oval flap was sewn to each the front and back sides. All of it was a deep red silk... very simple.  
  
One look at the ensemble made her shout one thing in her mind. 'My whole leg will be showing!'  
  
But what she didn't notice was the pair of pants underneath the outfit. When she saw a part that was hanging out from under the main piece, Hitomi let out the breath she was holding.  
  
'It's here for a reason... I guess I should wear it... they wouldn't put clothing like this here if there wasn't something going on.'  
  
Once Hitomi made sure her hair was dry, she dried the rest of her body before dressing in the clothing. When she was done fitting it all on, she looked into a mirror that was placed in the room. Studying her reflection in the mirror more carefully, Hitomi found that the pants were black... but they weren't a normal length. They reminded her of capris and the flaps that hung in front and back were a little above the end of the pants. All in all, everything suited her well.  
  
Suddenly there was a knock on her door.  
  
"Come in." she called.  
  
"Hitomi, sorry your shoes are a little late..." it was Masumi who came in, carrying another pair of shoes.  
  
'Oh yeah...' she thought 'my boots wouldn't look right in this.'  
  
Masumi held out another pair of sandal looking shoes. They were the flattest shoes Hitomi had ever seen. The bottom looked weaved from bamboo and the strap was a wide piece of black leather that went across the top of her foot. Surprising when she slipped them on, they were comfortable.  
  
"I never knew I was even getting another pair of shoes... it didn't matter if they were late." Hitomi replied to Masumi.  
  
"Are you ready now? I was told to come get you when you were done." Masumi informed her.  
  
"Ready?" Hitomi gave her a confused look. "What's going on?"  
  
"They never tell us anything... I just get an order and I follow it, no questions asked. So can we leave?" Masumi almost looked like she was getting impatient.  
  
"Yeah... let's go."  
  
Masumi led the way out and Hitomi followed. She had no clue what was going on, and neither did Masumi. Both girls caught up on what had been going on while Hitomi was in the infirmary till they reached their destination.  
  
Two men stood by a giant double door and when they spotted Hitomi, they both opened their door they were standing near simultaneously. Masumi was already gone from sight and Hitomi was now on her own.  
  
All thoughts of being alone vanished from her thoughts as the doors opened fully to reveal what was inside. A mildly large dinning room lay before her, the places set for a limited amount of people. In two lines on either side of the entrance, the Dragonslayers were lined up. Dilandau stood with Folken at the end of the lines. Everyone seemed to be looking at Hitomi, beckoning her to come in. A few of the Dragonslayers were smiling and gave her a slight nod while she walked by, calming her nerves a little.  
  
She arrived in front of Dilandau and Folken, and she waited for them to say something. Folken was the first to break the silence. "Hitomi... you have proved yourself many times already to me and many others that you are not an enemy of Zaibach or anyone else here. You have strength like none other that some don't even know of. Your passion for others is strong and your will to live never dies. By what I have heard, you wish to become a Dragonslayer. Is that correct?"  
  
Hitomi answered him in the steadiest voice she could muster, "Yes... that is true."  
  
Folken nodded and Dilandau took this as his queue. "As leader of the Dragonslayers, I welcome you into our ranks. As part of the Dragonslayers, you will be treated as an equal. Training will be hard and you may never give up. Are you willing and ready to be in our ranks?"  
  
"Yes... whatever it takes... I will learn to fight... I'm willing to train everyday." Hitomi answered him.  
  
Dilandau smirked slightly, and walked over to the giant table set up in the middle of the room. A long item covered in a velvet bag lay across the table in plain view. Dilandau picked it up gracefully and brought it forward.  
  
"Your choice of weapon, the glaive, is what you will be continuing to train with. Now since you are part of the Dragonslayers, a new weapon was made for you." Dilandau said as he stood there, holding the mystery item in his hands.  
  
He set one end of it down on the ground, and untied the rope that held the cloth on at the other end. As soon as the knot became undone, the rope fell to the floor along with the velvet, which slid off as well.  
  
Hitomi stood staring at the beautiful glaive that Dilandau held. The pole was stained a dark red color for Zaibach and the blade at the end gleamed and reflected light all around her.  
  
"This glaive was made for you Hitomi. The wood in the pole is dense, and very strong that even steel will have trouble cutting through it. The height was specified according to your physique. The blade is exactly shaped like the practice glaive you had been using, but if you notice, the steel is much lighter than what you're used to. It's just as strong but about half the weight. The blade is not sharpened for there is no need for it to draw blood yet."  
  
Hitomi gaped in awe at her new weapon... not until Dilandau got her attention again did she take her gaze away from it.  
  
"Hitomi... welcome to the Dragonslayers." Dilandau walked over to her, and held out the newly made glaive. Hitomi reached out and grasped the wood pole with both her hands, slowly lifting it from Dilandau's. She started to examine it more closely and smiled brightly as she set the pole down onto the ground.  
  
The Dragonslayers standing in their lines started to clap enthusiastically. Hitomi looked behind her at the boys clad in their armor and smiled softly. She was accepted... even if she was a woman... they didn't care. Countless times had she put her life on the line and had proved herself to being more than just a seer.  
  
Dilandau gave a signal to the Dragonslayers who walked towards the table and each took a seat. The three middle seats at the long table were left open for Dilandau, Hitomi, and Folken. Each sat down in that order and soon enough servants came in bringing platters of delicious smelling food with them. When everything was set up and ready, Hitomi looked down at her lap shyly.  
  
Folken looked at her curiously and said, "What's the matter Hitomi?"  
  
Hitomi peeked up at him. "Well it's just that I hate having everyone go through all this trouble just for m..."  
  
Folken interrupted her. "It's no trouble at all. You've done so much for us already Hitomi... we are expressing our gratitude. This is from the Dragonslayers, for you have saved one of them and their leader. It is from the Vione, thanking you for warning us on the attack that was to come. And it is to thank for your courage because you are making your own choices and have decided to fight. This is not just because you decided to become a Dragonslayer."  
  
Hitomi felt herself blush... she hadn't realized how much everyone really cared or how much she had done for these people already. Her thoughts were interrupted by Dilandau.  
  
"I'm sure the food they fed you in the infirmary was pretty bad, and I bet you're starving. Let's stop the chit-chat and eat!"  
  
Everyone nodded at his statement and soon enough everyone was filling their plates with delicious food. Vino was served but Hitomi was careful enough not to drink it all in one gulp and she declined when another glass was given to her. The vino would go to her head... and that wouldn't be a good thing.  
  
There were so many strange dishes that Hitomi had never seen before, but she tried them anyways and found many to be appetizing.  
  
When plates were cleaned and stomachs were full, everyone stood up from their places and walked towards the door. The Dragonslayers all gave her a slight nod as they left the dining hall to their own rooms. Folken left when he gave her a slight bow and smirked slightly. Everyone had gone except Dilandau who exited and held the door open for her. He shut it behind him and both of them started to walk down the hall.  
  
"Do you know how to get back to your room?" he asked.  
  
"Yeah... I'm pretty sure I remember how." she answered him back.  
  
"Tomorrow you will start training with the Dragonslayers... you are one of them now... so get all the sleep you can." They walked down one staircase together but once they reached a hall that split in three directions, he went a different way than Hitomi, leaving her to find her way back.  
  
As she remembered the way Masumi brought her, Hitomi made her way back to her room. She didn't have her glaive because it was taken to the training room. If she wanted to, she could later carry it around with her, but now it was unneeded... or so she thought.  
  
As she walked along the corridors and down the stairways, Hitomi could feel the vino start getting to her senses.  
  
'I only drank one glass! Why do I feel so disoriented?' she thought to herself.  
  
Hitomi's only solution to why she felt this way was because of the vino. She was still young and her body couldn't handle what she drank.  
  
'I'll never drink vino again if this is what it does to me... even just one glass!'  
  
She continued to mentally scold herself as she walked around the Vione, and after a while, she could tell she was getting lost. She stopped walking after a bit and stood there staring at her surroundings. But little did she know of the person that just turned the corner behind her. The man was another soldier, but if Masumi or Hitomi had seen his face, they would have recognized him right away.  
  
The man spotted Hitomi and at first thought nothing of her until he noticed her golden hair. Her teen figure stood out, and he immediately recognized her. His anger swiftly started to rise as he remembered exactly what she had done to him. But when he noted that she had no clue he was behind her, and neither did she have a weapon, the soldier swiftly thought up revenge in the back of his mind.  
  
Walking nearer to her, he hoped his shadow that flickered in the torchlight wouldn't give away his presence. He neared ever so closely little by little on the unsuspecting Hitomi.  
  
~Dilandau~  
  
Dilandau had gone back to his room but found that sleep was not going to come easily that night. His head pounded horribly from a headache that started to grow rapidly more painful so he tried to walk around the low lighting of the Vione and see if it would go away. The sheath of his sword swung as he strolled and his sword was pressed against his head. The cold steel on his head helped a little but the pain still lingered. After a while of walking in his white shirt, black pants, and unlaced boots, Dilandau figured that it wasn't helping, so he started to make his way towards the infirmary.  
  
'Hopefully they will have some kind of painkiller... I don't care how bad it tastes... as long as this damn headache goes away.' Dilandau told himself.  
  
His journey continued and when the thought of cutting his head with his sword popped into his mind, he sheathed his sword. The feeling of pure stupidity would always linger with him especially if he had caused the scar. So rubbing his temples became the new temporary relief.  
  
~Hitomi~  
  
"I'm lost..." Hitomi confirmed aloud.  
  
She sighed and started to walk forward again. The man following her found this opportunity to start getting closer. Trying to match her footsteps, he snuck up until he was a few feet behind her. Hitomi's senses kicked in as she felt in the back of her mind that she was in danger, but they kicked in too late. Before she knew it, the person behind her lunged forward, throwing one arm around her waist to lock both arms to her sides and covered her mouth with the other hand.  
  
Hitomi's eyes widened as she realized what was happening. She struggled to escape her captor's tight hold but found it no use. She was still weak and recovering, and the vino she drank didn't help at all. She was weaponless, and as the soldier's hold tightened around her waist, it took all she had to stop tears of pain from falling. Any tighter and her wound might open again.  
  
Her assailant brought his head down to her ear and whispered at Hitomi harshly. "Do you remember me? How you humiliated me? How you broke my pride? Being beaten by a woman... I don't know how you did it, but I'm going to make sure that never happens again!"  
  
Hitomi was suddenly let go of by both arms, but as soon as the man's grasp was released, he threw her against the wall. She nearly collapsed from the pain, but a strong hand grasped her shoulder and spun her around. Once Hitomi saw her attackers face, all her suspicion was confirmed. The man she had saved Masumi from was the person who snuck up on her.  
  
With no time for her to react, the soldier put his rough calloused hand around her neck and pressed her body to the wall. Her air supply was cut off suddenly and Hitomi couldn't breathe. She clawed at his hand that was crushing her neck, but he was too strong. She tried to kick out with her feet but found that he had them pressed against the wall with his leg. With her vision getting fuzzy, Hitomi stopped struggling as the world around her started to fade.  
  
'Am I really going to die? After everything that has happened... is it going to end here?' Hitomi's thoughts raced through her head as she started to panic. Her energy was leaving her and her body started to go numb. She had to live... she had to live on!  
  
Dilandau was still strolling down the corridors rubbing his temples when he heard something. It sounded like someone talking... but then again he could be hearing things... especially when he couldn't concentrate on much with the pain in his head. But as he drew closer, something didn't feel right. He turned a corner in the hall, but stopped dead in his tracks at the site before him.  
  
The man Hitomi had beat up before was now holding her against the stone wall. His blood started to boil at the site and when he saw Hitomi struggling against his hold, which was around her neck, Dilandau leapt into action.  
  
All thoughts of his headache vanished as he ran toward the man who was trying to suffocate her. The soldier didn't hear Dilandau till his footsteps were closer. Hitomi's attacker looked away from her pained expression just in time to watch as Dilandau slammed into him from the side with his shoulder. His grip around Hitomi's throat loosened instantly as he was driven sideways from Dilandau's blow.  
  
With her legs failing her, Hitomi immediately started to crumple to the floor. Dilandau saw this and without delay, he caught her limp form. Gently lowering her to the ground, he felt relieved when she started to cough harshly, gasping for air in the process. She put her hands gently on her throat as she recovered, but never noticed Dilandau.  
  
The soldier was back up on his feet, ready to give whoever did that a piece of his mind, but when he saw Dilandau there, he froze.  
  
"Lor... Lord Dilandau!"  
  
"Shut up!" Dilandau yelled at the man. "I don't want to hear any petty excuses or a word come from your mouth! All I know is that you were trying to kill one of MY Dragonslayers! For that... you will die!"  
  
The fire in his eyes burned with such ferocity that the soldier looked at him with pure fear. Something in Dilandau took over and in the blink of an eye, his sword was pulled from its sheath and the angry red-eyed leader of the Dragonslayers was charging at Hitomi's assailant. The soldier had just enough time to pull his own sword from his side and block the blow coming from Dilandau.  
  
Dilandau's attacks were vicious and powerful, the man hardly blocking them all. A few times, he hadn't been so lucky and was now bleeding from open wounds. Another slash and suddenly a sword went flying through the air, away from their owner's hands. The soldier sat on the ground staring at the sharp tip of Dilandau's sword. Scowling down at him, Dilandau would have cut his head off right away if it weren't for other voices running down the hall towards them.  
  
Folken with a few Dragonslayers ran down the hall straight towards them. When they arrived, Folken ordered Dilandau to put his sword away and for a few of the Dragonslayers following him to bind the soldier at Dilandau's mercy and take him to the infirmary. He was to be treated for his wounds then be sent into one of the prison cells in the lower levels.  
  
When Dilandau saw that the man who attacked Hitomi was being handled by his Dragonslayers, he ran to her side. She clutched her side and her face was trying to hide the pain. She looked at Dilandau when he knelt in front of her.  
  
"Let me see your wound." he softly told her.  
  
Hitomi lifted her hand and gently pulled the side of her shirt up a little. Dilandau sighed in relief. It hadn't reopened, but since it was still sensitive to touch, it hurt.  
  
"Do you think you can stand?" he asked her.  
  
She didn't answer him but Hitomi tried to push herself off the ground and used the wall to lean upon, but as she stood up fully, she collapsed right back down to the ground. Dilandau caught her again, but instead of helping her up, he put his other arm underneath her legs and lifted her body into his arms. He held her gently so as not to inflict pain on her side and looked at Folken who was still standing there.  
  
"I'm going to take Hitomi to her room." Dilandau informed Folken.  
  
Folken just nodded and walked away, having already figured out what went on only a few minutes ago.  
  
As Dilandau walked around the Vione to get to Hitomi's room, he found himself staring at her face a lot. She had fallen asleep in his arms not to long after he picked her up, and now her face was snuggled against his chest. He felt her warm breath easily go through his thin white shirt onto his skin, which made him shiver. Different feelings were going through him at a rapid pace with each thought that crossed his mind.  
  
'That bastard tried to kill her! Damnit! I could have had his head if it weren't for Folken... I hope he is tortured for what he has done...'  
  
He felt furious that he wasn't there sooner to help Hitomi and that maybe something could have been done to prevent it. But as he looked at her innocent sleeping face, different emotions stirred deep within him. She was so fragile but so strong all at the same time it amazed him. His anger disappeared as he studied her features more closely. His mind and body felt at rest because she was near him... how odd everything felt...  
  
Soon enough they arrived at Hitomi's room and Dilandau somehow managed to open the door without shifting Hitomi around in his arms too much. He pushed it closed with his foot and walked over to her bed. Gently he bent over and placed a sleeping Hitomi onto the soft mattress. When he moved away, he saw her wrap her arms around her upper body as if trying to find or get back the heat lost from being so close to him.  
  
Smiling slightly to himself, Dilandau just noticed how chilly the room was. He walked over to the fireplace and used some wood that was sitting next to it to light a fire. He sat on the couch across from the fire and found his eyelids getting heavier by the second.  
  
The warmth from the fire was relaxing and soon enough Dilandau drifted off into the world of dreams just like Hitomi. His body relaxed and he was now lying on the couch. When Hitomi woke up... he would be there, and he swore that he would never let something like that happen again. These were new emotions he was experiencing, but they made him feel at peace... that was something he hadn't felt for a long time.  
  
~*~*~*~*~  
  
Yeah! It was long and fluffy... and it's working up there! Sorry if there were any grammar mistakes but I just typed this out and its now 2:00 in the morning... I read it over... but my mind might not read everything correctly on the screen... I'm tired... so I'm going to bed. Please don't forget to review... -.- zzzzz 


	19. Comfort in Your Arms

Past 200 reviews! * Waves hand in front of face like Miss Congeniality * Thank you! Thank you everyone for all the fantastic reviews! Everyone is saying this is the best fanfic they have read... when some of you said that, I nearly broke into tears! Wow... I'm getting all emotional. From your awesome reviews, I give you... Chapter 19! And it has what you have all been waiting for! FLUFF! But first... a disclaimer!  
  
As it said from above... a disclaimer: I hitereth not owneth thy thingith callith Escaflowne... uhh... did that make ANY sense what so ever?  
  
****I posted the Inuyasha fanfiction. Please, if anyone likes vampire fanfictions or Inuyasha, then could you please read my story? You don't even need to know about Inuyasha's story line. I just took the characters and stuff. So if you like, please read it and review! It's called 'Look on the Inside'.  
  
AN to snowykittenz: Umm... I think your getting the wrong idea with Folken's smirks... bad on my part cause I had a bad choice of words. He wasn't thinking bad thoughts and I am NOT going to have him rape Hitomi. That's SO not in character. But if he did... I think Dilandau would kill him for hurting her. -_-,  
  
The warmth from the fire was relaxing and soon enough Dilandau drifted off into the world of dreams just like Hitomi. His body relaxed and he was now lying on the couch. When Hitomi woke up... he would be there, and he swore that he would never let something like that happen again. These were new emotions he was experiencing, but they made him feel at peace... that was something he hadn't felt for a long time.  
  
Chapter 19: Comfort in Your Arms  
  
Needles... green liquid... men in black cloaks... they surrounded her... intoxicating her senses were chemicals of every sort. Bare skin... how cold she felt. Her arms and legs, immobile because of leather straps. Pain! A mouth open in a silent scream as cold fluid ran into her veins, making her blood run cold and dulling her senses. Struggling against the bonds while the black-cloaked men just pathetically smiled.  
  
Panic rose and she struggled with more force. Then the liquid that was injected started to do something... every muscle in her body tensed up and felt like they were about to rip open. Limbs started to spasm uncontrollably and now it felt as though her body was going to die. She tried screaming but no sound would come.  
  
But slowly, ever so slowly, everything started to fade away. The sounds of the men talking and the machinery around her started to grow fainter and her vision got blurry. The last thing she heard one of the men say was, "How is he handling the injections?"  
  
"He's fine..." said another. "It will take more than this to kill Dilandau."  
  
Everything turned white suddenly and more peaceful sounds filled Hitomi's ears. Eyelids that were tightly closed before now relaxed. But when the light that still could be seen even with eyes closed refused to go away, Hitomi lazily opened them. Instead of being surrounded by men, she found herself lying in her bed. There was no pain and none of her limbs were restrained.  
  
'Why were they saying Dilandau?' her mind wondered. 'What was that dream about? Those people were dressed like Folken... but what were they doing?' Hitomi shook when her thoughts went back to the injections. 'Why did I see that?'  
  
Slowly lifting her head, she found that it was morning and the sun had already risen. She looked down at her form, finding that she was still clad in yesterday's clothing. She sat trying to remember what had happened and how she got to her bed until she heard another person in her room.  
  
She became more alert until she found that the sound was of a slow and peaceful breathing. Hitomi pushed herself slowly from her bed and stepped towards the person sleeping on her sofa. What she saw shocked her. There, sleeping like a baby was Dilandau. Once she looked at him, the memories of last night came rushing back to her.  
  
Pieces of what transpired that night flashed before her eyes. Not all of it was clear to her but she did remember that someone had attacked her and she thought she was going to die. Then she remembered Dilandau... he had saved her... he had taken Hitomi back to her room. Now he was there, sleeping.  
  
While she looked at his face, she saw all the coldness gone. He looked innocent and like a child. Hitomi smiled to herself. 'He really isn't as bad as everyone thinks him to be.'  
  
Still feeling tired, Hitomi gave off a light yawn and decided that some more sleep would do her good, especially after last night. She walked back over to her bed and lay down once again. Sleep overcame her and soon enough her eyes drifted shut to a dreamless sleep.  
  
It wasn't much later when Dilandau rose from his sleep. At first he didn't realize where he was until his eyes surveyed his surroundings. It hit him that he had fallen asleep on the couch in Hitomi's room.  
  
'Shit! How did I fall asleep? Did she already wake up? Did she see me?'  
  
Dilandau's thoughts suddenly quieted down when he spotted Hitomi lying on her bed fast asleep. He let out a sigh of relief and lifted himself from the couch.  
  
'I better get back to my own room before anyone suspects anything.' Dilandau looked at Hitomi's sleeping form once more before leaving.  
  
Hitomi was able to sleep a little longer until a knock came from her door. She lifted her head expecting to see Dilandau still sleeping on the couch but found that he had already left. Opening the door, she was slightly surprised to see Folken standing there. The door opened wider as he walked in.  
  
Hitomi gave him a questioning look and Folken turned around just in time to see the confusion on her face. He had a worried expression on his face but he broke the silence when he spoke.  
  
"Hitomi... are you alright? After what happened last night... do you need to rest today? It is up to you if you wish to start training today."  
  
She thought about it for only a few seconds until she smiled at him. "I'm fine... really. A lot has happened the past few weeks, but I need to start using my muscles again. I've been resting for the longest time. I am ready to start training."  
  
He looked skeptically at her, but it was her decision and he couldn't force her to change it. "If you are ready, I will escort you down to the training room."  
  
Hitomi nodded her head in reply. She was still in the clothes from yesterday, but they would do for today. Folken walked out of the room with Hitomi following behind him. She had only been in the main training room once, but that was a memory she didn't want to go back to. She nearly got killed that day... if it weren't for Dilandau... he saved her.  
  
'He's done that a lot... hasn't he?' she asked her inner thoughts.  
  
The walk was silent but when they grew closer to the doors of the training facility, Hitomi could clearly hear the sounds of practice swords and yelling coming from behind the doors. Folken opened one of the doors for Hitomi, motioned for her to walk in, and closed it behind her. With that, he walked off towards his lab.  
  
Everyone inside the room stopped what they were doing when they saw the girl from the Mystic Moon walk inside. She shyly looked around, not knowing what to do. Suddenly Dilandau's voice rose above everything. "I don't see swords moving! This is no time for you to stand around and stare!"  
  
The Dragonslayers looked quickly at their commander and resumed what they were doing. Dilandau on the other hand started to walk towards her and when she saw him, he motioned for her to walk towards him. She left her place in front of the giant doors and walked forward. As she followed Dilandau, who had now turned and started to walk in the same direction as she was, she saw her glaive placed on the wall in the room.  
  
Dilandau stopped in front of it as Hitomi walked to it and picked it up off its holster.  
  
"You feel up to training today?" he asked her.  
  
Answering that question for the second time that day, she nodded her head. Dilandau went to an empty space in the large room with Hitomi following.  
  
"Let's go over the basics again, then we will start off slow in attacking and blocking." Dilandau informed her.  
  
Hitomi followed the instructions Dilandau was giving her as she walked through different movements and techniques. Her body got tired quickly from the lack of exercise and muscle movement she went through during her recovery.  
  
"Block your head, now shin, now your left side. Good." Dilandau was doing this for a while now. He showed Hitomi the basic blocks for all the parts on the body again to refresh her memory and was now going through them in a random order. He wasn't attacking... he was just listing them as Hitomi performed each movement. At times she would hesitate or nearly drop her glaive, but when this happened, Dilandau would start again. After a while, she got the hang of it and it flowed more, but these were only the basics.  
  
'She has so much more to learn.' he thought to himself.  
  
Blocking when you were told where the blow was going to come from was easy, now it was time to learn how to read your enemy's actions and know where to block. Let's just say that it's much harder that it looks.  
  
Dilandau was standing in front of Hitomi, his sword out and ready.  
  
"Focus Hitomi. Read my actions... look to see if your enemy is focusing on a certain point. Try and find their weak spot." Dilandau was attacking her one area at a time, and she had to try and block wherever he was going to strike. Dilandau was careful not to hit her with the practice sword especially when striking near her abdomen.  
  
The rest of the day was spent blocking, and soon enough everyone was dismissed. The next few days were slow, but Hitomi was learning more than she ever had. She struggled to keep up with every movement as Dilandau started to attack more quickly, but by using her dousing ability, it was easier to see where attacks were coming from. She was able to read some of his movements, but she always seemed to leave herself open somewhere... and dousing couldn't help her with that.  
  
When Hitomi could block efficiently, Dilandau decided to start teaching her how to attack.  
  
"Attack more aggressively!" Dilandau yelled at her.  
  
Hitomi's glaive swung through the air as Dilandau easily deflected it. Hitomi stood there panting for air as she stood her weapon up next to her. She had been trying to land a hit on Dilandau for a few days now, but she never even got close. It was just too hard to try and attack, but still be aware and block all at the same time. Whenever she would attack, Dilandau saw a way around it and forced her back into a defensive position. The glaive did give her an advantage of being at a further distance from her opponent, but he always got past her defenses.  
  
Dilandau sighed in frustration and yelled something towards his Dragonslayers. "Gatty! Get over here!"  
  
The light brown haired boy stopped practicing with his sword and walked over to where Dilandau stood. "Yes Dilandau-sama?" he said.  
  
"I want you to attack Hitomi." Hitomi gave Dilandau the 'are you serious' look but stopped when she saw him walk around her.  
  
She was about to say something when she heard his voice behind her, "Get into your fighting stance."  
  
Hitomi did as she was told and was wondering what to do next until she felt his chest press against her back. She froze in place from the position they were both in, and his arms reached around her to grasp the glaive right below where her hands were positioned. Her breath quickened at the sudden close proximity of his body, but she cleared her thoughts as she felt that Dilandau was going to help her in attacking Gatty.  
  
"Just follow my movements." Dilandau's warm breath came from right over her shoulder.  
  
Hitomi nodded her head at Gatty to signal that he could attack at any time, and as soon as she did, he lunged forward. Dilandau was taller than Hitomi so he could see over her shoulder. Dilandau read Gatty's actions and moved the glaive to block. As soon as the weapons struck, he helped Hitomi push off his weapon and push Gatty back in the process. Dilandau then whispered for her to attack. He let go of the weapon and took a step back from Hitomi who was now slicing through the air at the other Dragonslayer. She deflected his sword to the right giving her a wide opening. She then pushed her glaive forward so it was resting in the air just inches away from Gatty's chest. She smiled in triumph and lowered her glaive.  
  
Gatty was dismissed and Dilandau walked back over towards Hitomi. She turned around when she heard him talking. "That is what you need to do. If you don't see an opening, make one. And just make sure you are always on your guard. You need to keep your distance because attacking will be hard once the enemy is closer."  
  
Hitomi blushed slightly with the memory of him against her and of his warm breath on the back of her neck, but her thoughts were interrupted. "We are done for today. Go and rest. We will start the same thing again tomorrow morning."  
  
With all the Dragonslayers dismissed, Hitomi walked back to her room to get some well-deserved sleep. It had been over a few week so far in her training, but it was slow going. She was still weak and need to rest more often, but that never made her quit. She still held her determination and continued on.  
  
She went to bed once she got to her room, and once she was snuggled within her blankets, sleep immediately came. The only thing was that it was not a restful sleep. Dreams came to her, dreams of home, dreams of her family. She saw her mom, dad, and brother. They were all worried about her... they missed her, just like how she missed them. She didn't realize it till now, but in a way, she had nearly forgotten about Earth... she almost forgot about her family. She woke up only a little later after she fell asleep to find that tears were already running down her cheeks.  
  
'I haven't even thought about home for the last few weeks... so many things have been happening lately... and I was excited over having a home here on Gaea. But... what about Earth?'  
  
Tears suddenly came at an unstoppable pace from her eyes as she sat there upright in her bed. No matter how hard she tried, nothing could stop all the emotion she was pouring from her heart and soul at that moment.  
  
From outside her door, Dilandau was walking by to check and see if she was safe in her room, but when he drew closer, he heard an almost silent whimpering...  
  
He opened the door a little and walked into her room. The sound was louder and he could tell she was crying... but why? As he drew nearer, he could tell she hadn't noticed him yet, especially since her hands were covering her face. Not wanting to scare her, he whispered her name. "Hitomi?"  
  
She jerked her head up thinking she was just hearing things until she saw him standing a few feet from her bed. She quickly tried to wipe the water away, but nothing could hide the tears that ran from her red eyes.  
  
Just seeing her sad... it caused a new emotion to spark inside of Dilandau. All his life he had never been around a woman. His past was one he couldn't remember, and this was the first time that he felt he needed to do something to sooth her pain. Everyone has the emotions in them... its just a matter of when they will emerge. He had never reacted like this before, he knew, but instinct took over and hopefully, he thought, he was going to do the right thing.  
  
As Hitomi was trying to wipe away the salt water on her face, Dilandau sat on the edge of her bed and pulled her into his embrace. Hitomi felt shocked at first, but as the warmth coming from him made her relax, she soon felt the tears resurface. He rubbed his hand up and down her back and rocked her back and forth, while whispering soothing words... and saying that it was ok to cry.  
  
Hitomi gripped his white shirt with both her hands and cried into his chest. He rested his chin on the top of her head as they both sat there in each other's company.  
  
'He's being so gentle.' Hitomi thought. 'What everyone else says about him... it's all lies... behind that cold exterior is a warm hearted person. Nobody has seen this side of him though... except me.'  
  
Hitomi smiled to herself as she held onto the warmth encircling her. Her tears had stopped and now she kept her face snuggled in his chest.  
  
Dilandau's thoughts were not troubled by war and death now. Everything and the world around him disappeared and all his worries vanished. 'I feel... at peace when I hold her. It's like nothing can harm me... not even those damn sorcerers.'  
  
Without making Hitomi think that he was going to leave, Dilandau changed his position so that he was leaning against the bed's headboard with Hitomi lying on the other side of him, her upper body still snuggled against his.  
  
After a few minutes of lying there, Dilandau broke the comfortable silence, "Do you want to talk about what made you upset?"  
  
Hitomi took a deep breath, trying to control the uproar of tears, and said, "I just miss my family... that's all..."  
  
"On the Mystic Moon?" Hitomi nodded her head. "You'll get to see them again... they know that too. One day, you will all be together again."  
  
Hitomi lifted her head to stare into his deep red orbs and smiled at him. Dilandau felt a warmth build up inside him as he gazed into her green eyes. More and more emotions built up in Dilandau, and Hitomi got lost in his gaze. Their feelings and some other sensations both had never experienced before started to take over.  
  
Dilandau lowered his head closer to Hitomi's, unsure how she would react. She closed her eyes and tilted her head a little to meet his lips with her own. Their kiss was soft and gentle, and passion did not blind all reason. Warmth like none other spread throughout Hitomi's body as Dilandau's lips caressed her own. Both pulled away slowly and red eyes met with green.  
  
Dilandau raised his head and looked at the girl in his arms. She smiled sweetly at him, showing he wasn't going to get slapped, and she put her arms around his waist, nuzzling her head against his stomach and deeply inhaling his scent. Both felt content and drifted off to a deep slumber.  
  
~*~*~*~*~  
  
I just had to end it there... it was just too cute! You people don't know how hard it was to write that chapter... I mean... just choosing the wording for it and trying to fit in how they heck they were going to kiss! We are 19 chapters into it and finally they display their emotions! YES! Hope the next chapters won't take me so long and hope I don't have writer's block... I had a major case of it during this chapter. Please review! Thanks to all of those who have for every chapter! 


	20. How Can This Be Happening?

Such great reviews! Thank you everyone! Things will start to wrap up and sorry for the confusion on the dream Hitomi had. But everything will come together in time. Oh and sorry for the wait. I was at the best amusement park in the world for a week. CEDAR POINT! Let's just say its tradition in the family to go every year and we live so close to it that we go every year... but that's all I'm going to say! And yes I did go on the new coaster! Top Thrill Dragster! I waited three hours but it was worth it! If anyone has gone on it or been to Cedar Point, give me a shout out. Now I give you chapter 20!  
  
To Feye Morgan: Bwahahahaha! You're on the right track in what you said on the sorcerers... but I'm just going to keep my mouth shut now...  
  
Disclaimer: I'm starting to dream about this crap cause I write it so often! For goodness sake! I don't own Escaflowne... it doesn't belong to me!  
  
Dilandau raised his head and looked at the girl in his arms. She smiled sweetly at him, showing he wasn't going to get slapped, and she put her arms around his waist, nuzzling her head against his stomach and deeply inhaling his scent. Both felt content and drifted off to a deep slumber.  
  
Chapter 20: How Can This Be Happening?  
  
But in that deep slumber, the serenity of the outside world deceives even the most perceptive. The world of memories and nightmares came to haunt the peacefulness of the two once again, making a night of rest impossible. No one would expect what was to come though. Even if the images were shown to them sooner, no one could prepare for what fate had in store...  
  
Both Hitomi and Dilandau were still lying on the bed in each other's arms, but stirred restlessly. In that world of oblivion, Hitomi found herself in the same position as she was in her last dream... strapped down on a cold metal table with hands and legs bound down. Once again, the men in black cloaks surrounded her, but their gaze did not hold on her for long. It was averted to her side, but she couldn't tell what was going on. She heard a person screaming her name, and then one of the sorcerers started to talk, but every word came out in a murmur.  
  
But as she tried to open her mouth to speak, her brain started to feel like it was going haywire. Before anything more could happen though, everything went black and the dream abruptly ended before anything more could be seen. Dilandau jerked awake causing Hitomi to do the same, but what they saw when they opened their eyes both shocked and frightened them.  
  
All the sorcerers were standing around Hitomi's bed, looming there, waiting... but before either had time to react to what was going on, Hitomi was grabbed roughly from behind and was pulled off the bed. She struggled against the men and tried anything to get away from them, but it was useless. Dilandau had also been grabbed, but he was being held back more than anything.  
  
"Hitomi!" he yelled. "No! Damnit! Don't touch her!"  
  
But all of his yelling was in vain. Dilandau was frantically trying to shake off the weak sorcerers to get to Hitomi, but Hitomi saw a syringe being pulled out of one of the sorcerers' cloaks. It took a few men to hold Dilandau in one spot while the sorcerer jabbed the needle into his bare arm.  
  
The effects were almost immediate and Dilandau felt his strength start to leave him. He fell to his knees as a few thoughts raced through his head. 'They had a sedative... damnit, why do they want Hitomi?'  
  
His vision blurred and the last thing he saw was her worried face and her fading voice frantically calling out his name. He tried to get his words out in more than a whisper. "I... I'm sor... sorry... Hitomi..."  
  
With the drug taking over, he collapsed onto the ground unconscious. Hitomi looked towards Dilandau's limp form and back at the sorcerers holding her. Using all the energy she had left inside, she tried to free herself from their grasp, but they only held on tighter.  
  
She looked back at Dilandau and started to scream, "Dilandau! No! What did you do to him! Let me go!"  
  
But her screaming was cut short when a hand from behind covered her mouth. A sorcerer was holding each of her arms and her feet had already been tied together. The person that kept their hand over Hitomi's mouth brought himself closer to her ear. With a raspy voice he whispered these words directly into her ear. "We have plans for you, my dear Hitomi."  
  
Before she could comprehend what was going on, her head was jerked to the side and a searing pain ripped through her neck and traveled throughout to her head. An unknown liquid filled her veins and soon brought her to unconsciousness along with Dilandau.  
  
One of the stronger sorcerers then picked her up into his arms and carried her out of the bedroom door, following behind several others. The last to leave were the two sorcerers that were dragging Dilandau across the floor by his arms. The door shut heavily as the room cleared of every person there.  
  
No one knew what was happening while on the Vione, the Dragonslayers wondered where their commander was and Masumi questioned where her friend had disappeared. But unknown to many, in the lower levels of the Vione a secret laboratory lay hidden from any wandering people.  
  
The sorcerers had arrived in this hidden area and were soon ready to begin their experiment. Hitomi had been laid on a cold metal table, her arms strapped perpendicular to her body and her feet were secured in place by leather straps. The sleeves on her shirt had been torn off and her boots and pants were stripped from her body. Ever so slowly, the effects of the drugs started to wear off. Hitomi's sedative had less strength, so she was the first to start coming around. Her mind was fuzzy and thinking straight was quite impossible. The sensitivity of her skin felt the hard cool surface beneath her body, and as she inhaled, the smell of her surroundings sent her mind into full alert. One word came to mind. Chemicals. It was the same as her dreams... and this is what she feared.  
  
Afraid to open her eyes, Hitomi lay on the table praying that it was all just a dream, but when she remembered the site of the sorcerers before her eyes when she woke up next to Dilandau, she came to a frightening conclusion. This wasn't a dream... it was real...  
  
But a voice coming from right next to her roused her from her thoughts. "We know you're awake... why don't you just open your eyes and stop trying to hide?"  
  
Hitomi refused to do anything the sorcerers told her, but when she felt the table she was laying on suddenly move, her eyes shot open. The world spun for a few seconds until her vision maintained its focus and found that she was moving to a vertical position. As she looked around, she noticed the room wasn't that big but it was extremely dark. Machinery and liquids of all sorts lay throughout the area, but as her eyes scanned, one figure caught her eye.  
  
"Folken!" Hitomi screamed. It was Folken... but he was lying on the ground unconscious, a little blood running from a cut on his head. There was glass scattered around him that of which looked like the remains of a beaker. "What did you do to him!?" she yelled this time at the sorcerers.  
  
They looked at each other and one of them stepped forward towards Hitomi. He smiled cynically at her and gave off a soft chuckle. "Folken tried to stop us in our plans. He was going to ruin everything and was going to try to save you... but we got to him first."  
  
As she looked at him in horror and glanced at Folken again, her mind screamed in despair. 'No... this can't be happening... why is this happening? Why?!'  
  
"What do you want?" Hitomi asked them, trying to keep the waver in her voice down.  
  
"We will tell you in time... but first we have to wait for our other specimen to wake up."  
  
Before Hitomi could question what the old sorcerer just said, she saw a figure with silver hair being dragged across the ground by a few men. They dragged him to where Hitomi stand and threw him onto a table right next to hers. He was strapped down exactly how they had Hitomi and then reclined him up. She looked over to him and saw he was still not in the real world. His head hung because only his arms and legs were secured, but that was soon to be changed.  
  
A sorcerer, also know as Heikurou, walked over to him and grabbed his forehead, forcing it back against the back of the table very harshly. Dilandau's head made contact with the metal and as soon as it did, his eyes squinted shut in pain and surprise, but he did not wake up. A few slaps echoed throughout the space surrounding them, and slowly Dilandau opened his eyes, almost as if knowing what to expect.  
  
What he didn't expect was to hear Hitomi's voice, "Please stop it!" she shouted in his direction.  
  
His eyes shot open upon hearing her voice, but their eyes did not meet for Hitomi was following Heikurou, who was now walking towards her. He stood directly in front of her and raised his hand, sending it flying across her cheek. Hitomi's head flung to the side from the blow, letting out a slight gasp as it happened.  
  
The man that just slapped her then started to shout right in her face. "You will not speak unless told to! Do you understand?!"  
  
Hitomi looked right back at his face, and spit on it. It landed right in his eye, making him become even more infuriated than before. The sorcerer wiped the liquid from his face rather quickly and glared down at Hitomi, but she stared straight back.  
  
"You will be more obedient once we are done with you wench!" and with another raise of his hand, Hitomi's cheek was struck once again, but this time it was with much more force and caused blood to run down the side of her mouth. She held strong and didn't let a sound escape her throat, but she felt the tears threatening to run. Then for the first time, she noticed a low growl coming from the other side of her. Hitomi turned her head to find Dilandau now wide-awake, and glaring at the sorcerer who had just slapped her. Their gazes met for a split second until another sorcerer broke their stare.  
  
"And I see the failed one has decided to join us. How have you been Dilandau? Miss us much?" a younger sorcerer by the name of Daijirou taunted him.  
  
Dilandau glared at him while Hitomi looked at him with much confusion. 'Did they just call Dilandau the failed one? Has he dealt with these people before?'  
  
The sorcerers laughed some more as they watched Dilandau struggle against his bonds. They all knew that this was the last place he ever wanted to be, but his efforts to free himself would all go in vain.  
  
One of the eldest of the sorcerers then spoke. "Don't waste your energy Dilandau... you were one of our first experiments in the past. We have no more use of you, neither are we going to waste our time on trying to perfect you."  
  
"What do you mean?" Dilandau growled.  
  
"When we first found you, we thought you would have been the perfect candidate for our experimentation. (AN: Remember Dilandau is never Celena... I'm changing his past, so he never was a girl and is not a sibling of Allen's.) Your parents died in an attack and all of the survivors were taken in, the men and boys were recruited in the Zaibach army, the women were given other jobs. You would have been trained in the army... but we saw something in you... a fire you could say... a passionate fire of war and battle. This and your lively spirit brought us to choose you. We altered your mind so that you would feel no emotion whatsoever when in a battle, and held no sympathy for anyone. At first you seemed to be flawless... our testing had been successful. You trained day and night with your sword and guymelef, mastering them both. We gave you command of the elite Dragonslayers and you led them to destroy Fanelia. But from there, you started to go on a downfall. Your emotions started to resurface. You went ballistic during battles and got scared when fighting the Dragon. (Aka- Van) When one of the Dragonslayers would get hit or injured, you cared for their well-being. That is why you are a failed experiment! None of those emotions were supposed to be felt ever again! You were going to lead Zaibach to victory! We were going to win the war!" he stopped to calm himself down and started to talk again.  
  
"We almost lost hope in you Dilandau... that is until we got a reading on a new energy on Gaea. We were ordered by Dornkirk to obtain the source of this energy, but failed every time an attempt was made. I'm sure you know what we are talking about... right Hitomi?" he directed his talk to her.  
  
She looked puzzled for a moment until realization hit her. That time she was kidnapped out of her room... and that other time during Millerna and Dryden's wedding... they had demanded she be given to them. But that was Folken who ordered her to go with them... wasn't it?  
  
"Why did I hear Folken's voice at the wedding ordering them to hand me over when Folken tried to stop you anyways?" Hitomi asked them.  
  
"Folken was just following Dornkirk's orders. He never questioned them until he found out the real reason why we needed you."  
  
Another sorcerer interrupted him, "We were just planning on killing Dilandau... but then he just happened to stumble into you after a battle. Everything was just fine until the Dragon came and rescued you. We kept Dilandau alive so he could bring you back... but even he didn't need to do that. You came crawling back right into our arms. For a while we just watched and observed you, and soon enough we were convinced you would not fail like our other product.  
  
"Your psychic powers were great and your spirit was full of life and vigor. Now the time has come where you will lead Zaibach to triumph in this war! We will intervene with fate and conquer all of Gaea! You will use your powers to aid us in our battles and you will fight like Dilandau once did."  
  
"I'll never be a pawn in this war! I'll never help you in your conquest!" Hitomi shouted.  
  
All the sorcerers then smiled very cynically, a few giving off soft chuckles. "Dear, dear Hitomi... you didn't think we would just ask you if you would agree to do it on your own free will... did you? We knew you wouldn't do it willingly... but didn't you hear us when we were talking about our dear little Dilandau?" the sorcerer then walked up to Dilandau, gave him a quick glance, and turned his gaze back on Hitomi. "We altered his mind because we knew he would not just become an emotionless soldier on his own free will, and he had too many painful past memories that needed to be erased. Then we chemically altered his brain so emotions would not come ever in his life.  
  
"But as you can see... his feelings started to show gradually. Then when you came into our midst, his solid emotionless exterior started to crack very slowly every day. In time, he finally beat down everything we did to him. The last emotional barrier he had to break was that of love... and you were the one who broke it. Now he is a normal human."  
  
Hitomi turned her gaze towards Dilandau, who was now also staring into her green eyes. As she looked into his fiery red eyes, her thoughts then became centered only on him. His eyes showed gentleness and fear for her, but lingering among many newfound emotions, there was one that stood out among all the rest. His gaze shone with one of love.  
  
Then the sorcerer's last words echoed in her mind... 'The last emotional barrier he had break was that of love... and you were the one who broke it...'  
  
'Does that mean that Dilandau is... in love with me?' After Hitomi thought about it, everything made sense to her. His emotions were showing little by little towards her... he didn't know what love was. That was until their kiss just last night... after that moment, all barriers were shattered. Not until she reflected on the thought some more did another realization dawn on her own feelings. 'Not only did Dilandau grow emotionally... but I did as well... Dilandau is in love with me... and I'm... I'm in love with him...'  
  
Once Hitomi dawned upon this, it felt as if she was completed... someone loved her and she knew it was pure... she thought she felt this way for Allen and Van... but those feelings were not true to herself. The love she thought she had for others was not true to her heart. None of them ever felt like this.  
  
Just as Hitomi was getting lost in her feelings and thoughts, the sorcerers' voices brought her back to reality. Love was wonderful... but now in their clutches, every happy thought vanished and anything felt hopeless.  
  
'Why does everything have to end here?!' Hitomi yelled to herself.  
  
Tears once again terrorized her eyes as she tried to hold them back. Many of the sorcerers had gone back to what they were previously doing, now ignoring the two lovers. A few tears did escape from Hitomi's eyes, but she was unable to wipe them away. Dilandau saw her staring at the ground, trying to hide her face. He was angry with himself for not being able to protect her, but he also felt no hope in their situation. He didn't want to comfort her, because he didn't think everything would be all right. Getting one's hopes up will only lead to more disappointment in the end.  
  
Footsteps then snapped his gaze from her form to look at all the men now walking towards Hitomi's saddened form. Once they nearly surrounded her, she lifted her head up to inspect what was transcending only to look more frightened. Hitomi looked to Dilandau probably for the last time. Their gazes caught and one of the sorcerers noticed them.  
  
"Don't worry Dilandau," his acid sounding voice taunted. "You'll be able to see and hear everything that is happening to Hitomi... it will be nearly the same thing you went through..."  
  
Dilandau cringed at the thought. His past... it was so painful... it was hell itself... many times the pain was so severe that he wished he would die right there... but his body refused. Now Hitomi would go through the same thing he went through all those years ago.  
  
Someone hit a lever, and Hitomi's table reclined back so she was lying down again. Hitomi never took her eyes off Dilandau while everything was going on... just holding onto his gaze... it gave her comfort and strength, but she knew none of that would matter once the sorcerers started to pump her with chemicals.  
  
Machines were heard as they began to run, lights flickered here and there, and the aged chemical smell of the room intensified. Even with every distraction, Hitomi and Dilandau never broke their gaze. The final moment then came. A long thick needle connected to a tube was drawn by one of the men.  
  
Hitomi's eyes suddenly closed tightly in pain as her whole body forced against the restraints. Her teeth clenched as she felt the cold liquid of mind-altering chemicals enter her veins. Hitomi's body lowered in temperature and the needle was removed from her arm. But nothing could prepare her for the pain that would follow. Her head was pushed to the side... another needle entering her neck. This time a loud scream erupted from their victim. The needle was taken out almost as quickly as it had been put in and the sorcerers backed away a little, watching her fight the drugs, even thought they all knew it would be in vain in the end.  
  
Hitomi's body continued to jerk and pull against the straps on her arms and legs. She screamed every few seconds, her eyes squeezed shut as tears of pain fell. Hitomi fought all she could to keep control of her mind and thoughts, but the drugs started to take over.  
  
Dilandau watched Hitomi the whole time, reliving the pain in his own body as memories of his experience haunted him once again. His heart cried out to her as he watched her writhing on the table, her screams pierced his heart.  
  
'If I ever get my hands on those sorcerers, they will die a most painful death to pay for all the pain they caused Hitomi and me.' Dilandau growled to himself.  
  
But as Hitomi's fighting continued, her energy started to dissipate, and her struggle became less violent. Soon, all of her control would be lost, and she would become a slave for Zaibach.  
  
But one might come to thinking... were the sorcerers really altering fate? Or was this what fate had intended to happen all along? Some may never know... but then fate has to finish what it started, does it not? So where fate may be altered, it may not have been thought of to be altered till the very end...  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Bwahahahaha! Cliffhanger! But I promise, it's the last one in this story! You bet! The last chapter is next!! I can't believe it! It's ending already! I have a question for all you readers out there. Who wants alternate endings? I will write a sad ending, because you know, every story doesn't always have a happy ending. But then following it, I will have a happy ending for all those out there that like to have that warm fuzzy feeling inside. ( I have both endings pretty much planned out and I'll try to get them written ASAP. But then I'm doing credits for all those who have reviewed so far... so that may take a while. Anyways... please tell me in your review if you wish to have a sad and happy ending. They will be posted as different chapters but they will be posted at the same time so you can read them simultaneously. Thanks everyone! Please R&R! 


	21. Sad EndingThings Change and Don't Go You...

This is the sad ending... trust me... you'll probably need a tissue. If you don't want to read this, then just go to the next chapter... that is the happy ending. The credits are in the next chapter... not this one... please don't forget to R&R! And if what Hitomi says near the end reminds you of Moulin Rouge... well you're right. Lol... couldn't help but put some of the things Satine says in.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne, Moulin Rouge, Evanescence's song Missing, or the quotes.  
  
But as Hitomi's fighting continued, her energy started to dissipate, and her struggle became less violent. Soon, all of her control would be lost, and she would become a slave for Zaibach.  
  
But one might come to thinking... were the sorcerers really altering fate? Or was this what fate had intended to happen all along? Some may never know... but then fate has to finish what it started, does it not? So where fate may be altered, it may not have been thought of to be altered till the very end...  
  
Chapter 21-Ending 1-Things Change and Don't Go Your Way  
  
'Hitomi... I'm sorry I wasn't able to protect you...' Dilandau's struggles had gone silent after watching Hitomi go through much severe pain for what seemed like an eternity. Her screams quieted but her body still jerked and her head rolled from side to side as she fought the drugs.  
  
No more injections or chemicals were placed into her body, but pain was still evident in Hitomi's face. To think that she was only thinking of the pain may be obvious, but in her mind, many other thoughts ran through her head. 'I never believed in pre-determined fate... but why now do I feel as if this was my destiny? Especially when everything was turning out so perfectly... but then not every story has a happy ending. Maybe my story here on Gaea was never meant to have a happy ending. If I did end up staying with Van... I would need to go back to my home... who knows if I would have ever been able to get back to Gaea or not. It was just not meant to be...'  
  
As more time passed, more memories disappeared. Her family and friends on the Mystic Moon were now forgotten, erased by the chemicals. All of her experiences on Gaea were soon to follow.  
  
But when her memories about Dilandau were reached, something stopped inside. A new energy rose inside Hitomi as she fought off the drugs with new strength. Part of her didn't know why she was fighting, but the other part needed to keep those memories alive.  
  
But because she fought the drugs with all her concentration, anything that went on around her went on unnoticed. The lone figure on the floor was now gone from his spot. None of the sorcerers noticed this and that was their downfall. Too overcome by their new experiment, the sound of metal clinking against metal went unseen by anyone.  
  
Suddenly a sorcerer gave out a sharp gasp. This everyone noticed and looked at him, utterly shocked. A now blood covered sword jutted out of his chest, blood quickly flowing down the front and back of his black cloak. He looked stunned as he glanced at the object protruding from his chest. Blood started to trickle down from his mouth and the sword was pulled out of his chest with one quick motion. The sorcerer collapsed to the ground, now slowing dying until his heart stopped entirely.  
  
Everyone except Hitomi was now fully aware of what had happened and they were now glaring at the man who just killed one of his own kind. Blood slightly matted his blue hair and his eyes glared at all the black-cloaked men. Standing with his sword ready, Folken charged at the next unprepared sorcerer. Slicing his neck, blood gushed down his body as he collapsed, a pool of blood forming around his dead corpse.  
  
A few more sorcerers went down, some grasping large gashes on their bodies, others falling dead, and the rest left with fatal wounds. Folken only left a few survivors... but he left certain ones alive on purpose. Heikurou sat on the ground, pressing his hand against a large gash in his arm. Folken looked to make sure he wasn't going to try anything and then walked to Dilandau.  
  
Dilandau was fully aware of everything that had just transpired and was amazed. He knew Folken could use a sword... but never with such skill he just saw. Before he knew what was happening, Folken had released all the restraints holding Dilandau down. He nearly collapsed from the weakness he felt in his muscles but pushed his weak state aside as he rushed over to Hitomi.  
  
But what he saw sent rage through his veins. She was turning pale and she was pulling against the restraints so harshly that they were cutting into her skin. Red blood tricked down her wrists and dried tears stained her face. He quickly undid the bonds that held her and started to tear at the bottom of his pants. He ripped a few strips of cloth from them and wrapped Hitomi's bleeding wounds. Looking at her made his heart ache but once he heard a whimper from behind, all sympathy vanished as he remembered the people who had done this.  
  
"Please Folken... have mercy! Don't kill me!" an injured Heikurou sniveled.  
  
Folken looked down upon him with disgust. "I won't kill you as long as you can change Hitomi back to normal."  
  
"But that's... impossible. Those chemicals are irreversible. There is no cure or anything to undo what has been done," the sorcerer told him.  
  
"What do you mean?!" Dilandau was now charging at the defenseless man while he tried to back away. The fire in the young boy rose as he heard the stupid sorcerer say those words, and he was blinded by fury as he ran towards Heikurou, gripped him by the throat, and pinned him to the ground. Dilandau's face came a few inches away from the man beneath him as he repeated himself. "What do you mean it's irreversible?"  
  
Fire grew in his eyes and the sorcerer was now gasping for breath. He let up a little to let the older man speak. "The drugs we gave her are more advanced than what we gave you. We found the mistakes we made with you and corrected them. There is no way to change what has been done to her. Unlike you... she will not be broken."  
  
Dilandau became infuriated with his words and cut off his air supply. After the large loss of blood, and oxygen not reaching his brain, Heikurou died. Dilandau was breathing hard but when Folken put a hand on his shoulder, he snapped out of his daze. Folken then looked to his side and Dilandau followed his gaze. Hitomi was now lying on the floor, her head supported by Folken's cloak. He had placed her down there for fear of her falling off the table while struggling with her mind.  
  
Without a second thought, Dilandau rushed to her side. "Hitomi..." he whispered to her.  
  
Her face showed that she recognized his voice and it softened slightly. Her hand instinctively rose up and he gasped it with his own hands. The touch had almost startled Hitomi, and for the first time since she had been injected, her eyes opened. Those beautiful eyes of emerald green now looked as if they had faded, the white surrounding them had become red, and the shine of happiness had now turned glassy.  
  
Hitomi tried to smile at him, but her lip trembled slightly instead. A little above a whisper Hitomi said, "H... hold me... please... just hold me."  
  
Dilandau obliged and sat on the ground next to her. He gathered her in his arms and rested her back against one of his legs that was bent. Her head rested against his bare chest, feeling his soft skin on her cheek. Her breath felt shallow, but that didn't matter to either.  
  
"Dilandau..." Hitomi's soft voice started to lightly talk once again. "I need you to do one last thing for me."  
  
"What is it?" Dilandau would do anything for her at this point, but what she was to ask wasn't what he was expecting.  
  
"Please... end my life..."  
  
Dilandau stared at her, disbelieving every word she just said. "What?" His voice was soft.  
  
"I'm sorry... but..." tears started to fall from her red eyes once again. "...you must bring an end to all of this."  
  
"No... Hitomi... you'll be all right. I know you can fight this... and if the drugs do take over... I'll help you beat it... just like how you helped me."  
  
"It doesn't work like that... the sorcerers perfected the drug... you were the first one they tested it on... it had its faults."  
  
Dilandau kept shaking his head back and forth as if denying everything. "No... even if you do change... I'll be here... our emotions will break the barriers... we can beat this Hitomi!"  
  
She closed her eyes as another sob escaped her throat. Oh how she wished his words were true... but it could never be... it was never meant to be. "I saw everything the sorcerers did... they made it so that once the chemicals fully took someone over, it would make them kill anyone they've ever loved or cared about. It's protection. Everyone I love will be killed... they won't be able to live long enough to sever the hold this drug has on my mind. When I can't fight it off any longer... I'm going to kill you first..."  
  
"But that never happened to me... I never killed anyone I loved..."  
  
Hitomi looked at him sympathetically. "Your parents were killed in an attack... they were the only ones you ever loved. The sorcerers experimented on you, but since you loved no one while you were with Zaibach, you didn't need to kill."  
  
"I can't do this... I can't kill you..."  
  
"If you don't... then this war will rage on, and more innocent people will die. More soldiers will be needed, and more countries will suffer the effects of it." Hitomi sounded near desperation.  
  
Dilandau looked at her and shook his head from side to side. "But why do you need to die? Of all people... you are the one to be sacrificed... why?"  
  
"Dilandau..." Hitomi's eyes shut instantly and her body tensed up again. She was fighting her own war inside her head as she struggled to remember that time she had the conversation with Dilandau... when she had defended Van for not running away during the battle in Fanelia. The memory was brought up again as she opened her eyes once more. "Remember when you said that Van ran from battle and that he was cowardly in doing so... but I said it wasn't his fault?"  
  
After thinking about it for a few moments, he nodded his head slightly.  
  
"You asked me why Van didn't stay and fight if he would willingly die for his country... and I told you that fate did it."  
  
"Yeah... and you left me so confused. I had no idea what meaning you had behind your words." Dilandau confessed.  
  
"Fate... our predetermined future..." Hitomi started to trail off as if in deep thought. "I never believed in fate to tell you the truth... but now... since I came to Zaibach, I believe in destiny. I believe we were meant to meet each other, and I believe that it was our destiny to fall in love with each other." Tears started to roll down Hitomi's cheeks more freely. "And I also think that I am predestined to die now."  
  
"Don't say that! We decide our own futures... fate... it's all just a bunch of shit... Hitomi... you don't have to die!"  
  
Hitomi would love to believe the words that were just said, but in her heart, fate or no fate, she knew that to end the suffering... to end this meaningless war... she would need to die. Just because of her selfishness to live, she knew hundreds would die because of it. When she first came to Zaibach, she wanted to make sure that no one would die because of her... that no one would get hurt on her behalf. This was a decision she had to make... no matter how much it hurt Dilandau to have to carry it out. Both theirs hearts beat with fear and hope faded from Dilandau's face.  
  
Suddenly Hitomi's body jerked against Dilandau's and her mouth opened, quickly letting out a sharp exhalation. Dilandau became alarmed and tried to restrict her body. It was obvious that by the minute, control in Hitomi's mind became harder and harder to keep.  
  
"Hitomi... Hitomi! Listen to my voice! You have to fight it! Please..." Dilandau held her close and kept whispering into her ear, trying to help her fight off the drugs. It wasn't long before her struggles slowed and her breathing calmed. She looked at Dilandau once she blinked a few times and smiled very tiredly at his worried gaze.  
  
Her expression was soft and it almost looked as if she was at peace. Her voice then broke their silence. "I can't fight it any longer. I'm so sorry... Dilandau... please... before it's too late... while I still have control... do it for me..."  
  
Her words hit him painfully, and he knew what he had to do. With a shaky hand, he reached towards his right leg, and found a medium sized dagger sheathed inside his boot. The sorcerers had only stripped him of his shirt, but they did not look for any weapons. His hand grasped the handle unsurely and he bit his lip to hold back the oncoming tears as he slid the sharp metal from its hold. He now had one arm around her shoulders and the other held the dagger that gleamed in the low lighting.  
  
For once in his life, Dilandau had no idea what to do with the weapon he held so tightly in his grasp. He started at it deftly but snapped out of his daze when he felt one of Hitomi's hands gently touch his cheek, and the other wrap around the hand holding the dagger. He looked at her questioningly but once he saw the understanding in her green depths, he almost felt relieved. He wouldn't have to do it alone... she was there... and she would guide him...  
  
Hitomi brought the tip of the sharpened metal to her heart, but she did not remove her hand. Her eyes locked with Dilandau's once again and she spoke to him for the last time. "Promise me you'll end this war once and for all. Promise me that there will be peace and that you will not be enemies with Van and the others. Promise me..."  
  
Dilandau listened to her words carefully and nodded his head in agreement. "I promise..."  
  
The hand that was caressing his cheek then pulled his face down towards hers for one last moment of peace. Their lips locked together, each putting much more passion into it than their last one. Neither wanted to let go but as Hitomi's mind became more unsure of itself, she was forced break the moment. She smiled so sweetly at him and nodded her head, signaling she was ready. Dilandau also nodded his head and almost silently whispered "I'm sorry..."  
  
Their hands gripped the handle tightly and without a second thought, they both thrust the blade into Hitomi's chest. The pain was severe and Hitomi gasped in surprise, but as she felt her blood running freely from her body, the sting seemed to fade away.  
  
Dilandau was now holding her against his body while tears poured from his eyes. He gave no whimper or shout of anguish, but the warm tears of loss and misery fell almost unnoticed from his now gently burning orbs.  
  
Hitomi looked at him one last time, the world around her starting to vanish. Her words came out choked, but he could tell they held no regret. "I... love you... and... remember that I'll always be with you."  
  
Slowly, as her life faded away, her eyelids closed over her shining emerald eyes. Her smile did not drop, nor did it change, and soon after, her body became limp. Realization struck Dilandau hard as he stared at the only woman he had ever loved. He dropped his head so his forehead rested against Hitomi's, and let his silent tears drop onto Hitomi's pale face, where they ran off like a waterfall to the ground. "And I will always love you... Hitomi..."  
  
~*~ Missing by Evanescence ~*~  
  
Please, please forgive me,  
  
But I won't be home again,  
  
Maybe someday you'll look up,  
  
And barely conscious you'll say to no one, Isn't something missing?  
  
~*~*~  
  
As Hitomi's spirit faded away, she knew exactly what would happen to all who ever knew her on Earth. She would be erased from everyone's memories... just as if she had never existed. But there would always be those thoughts in the back of everyone's mind... thoughts of Hitomi, the one who no longer existed on Earth or Gaea.  
  
~*~*~  
  
You won't cry for my absence I know,  
  
You forgot me long ago,  
  
Am I that unimportant?  
  
Am I so insignificant?  
  
Isn't something missing?  
  
Isn't someone missing me?  
  
Even though I'd be sacrificed,  
  
You won't try for me not now,  
  
Thought I'd die to know you love me,  
  
I'm all alone,  
  
Isn't someone missing me?  
  
~*~*~  
  
'I have to die for peace, yes, but don't let my sacrifice go in vain. Without you... I'm alone here Dilandau... but at least I died knowing you felt the same about me.'  
  
~*~*~  
  
Please, please forgive me,  
  
But I won't be home again,  
  
I know what you do to yourself,  
  
Shudder deep and cry out,  
  
Isn't something missing?  
  
Isn't someone missing me?  
  
Even though I'd be sacrificed,  
  
You won't try for me not now,  
  
Thought I'd die to know you love me,  
  
I'm all alone,  
  
Isn't someone missing me?  
  
And if I bleed... I'll bleed  
  
Knowing you don't care,  
  
And if I sleep, just to dream of you,  
  
And wake without you there,  
  
Isn't something missing?  
  
Isn't something...  
  
~*~*~  
  
I bleed till I die, and I'll always see you in my everlasting dream. Back then... if you saw me bleeding like this now, I'm sure you wouldn't have paid me any heed, but now... I'll bleed...  
  
~*~*~  
  
Even though I'm the sacrifice,  
  
You won't try for me not now,  
  
I would die to know you love me,  
  
I'm all alone,  
  
Isn't something missing?  
  
Isn't someone missing me?  
  
~*~*~  
  
In the end, Dilandau kept his promise to Hitomi. He led the Dragonslayers against Zaibach and stopped the ongoing war once and for all. A hatred for Van still burned within him, but he could not bring himself to show it.  
  
Dilandau had told everyone Hitomi knew on Gaea about her sacrifice. Together, everyone mourned for her. Tears were shed, but the tears fell in a time of peace. Hitomi... a girl who didn't even call this planet her home, had given up her own life to save it. She came as a total stranger, but left in the memories of all who knew her. If one were to look back on those memories, all they would need to do is remember those shining emerald eyes and wide smile to feel at peace with themselves.  
  
But in any world... fate or no fate... it doesn't matter if you believe in it in the end. Your future may have already been written out for you or maybe you did choose your future yourself, but either way, it's all just a part of life. The decisions you made and make can decide everything. Whether they be bad choices or good, that all depends on the outcome. But no matter what, just live life to its fullest.  
  
As Hitomi's mind died, these words were spoken only to herself, never meant to be heard by anyone... 'I guess in many peoples lives... whether it be good or bad... people really do change. Nothing can stay the same way forever...and in the end of my life story... things change...'  
  
"There is no chance, no destiny, no fate that can hinder or control the firm resolve of a determined soul." ~Ella Wheeler Wilcox 


	22. Happy EndingIn a Future of Promise Thing...

Finally, here is the last chapter of my story. This is the ending if you want a warm fuzzy feeling inside. Been busy so sorry it took a while. I went to Evanescence's concert a few weeks ago! It was awesome! Anyways... we've all been through a lot... if you ever reviewed your name will be at the bottom with a comment from me.  
  
Disclaimer: * cries hysterically * This is the last disclaimer I'll have to write for this story! * cries harder * You don't know how much it hurts to say... I don't own Escaflowne!  
  
But as Hitomi's fighting continued, her energy started to dissipate, and her struggle became less violent. Soon, all of her control would be lost, and she would become a slave for Zaibach.  
  
But one might come to thinking... were the sorcerers really altering fate? Or was this what fate had intended to happen all along? Some may never know... but then fate has to finish what it started, does it not? So where fate may be altered, it may not have been thought of to be altered till the very end...  
  
Chapter 22-Ending 2-In a Future of Promise... Things Change  
  
Dilandau knew he couldn't do anything. It was hopeless... the sorcerers had been successful. Hitomi and Dilandau were helpless to do anything. 'Damnit! Why did it have to come down to all this? Why wasn't I more aware!? I should have seen them planning this from the start...'  
  
He hung his head in despair, all fight gone from his body. Hitomi's body had stopped it's writhing, but now her lungs forced more air in and out. Her eyes were open, but they stared at nothing and showed no emotion. All the black-cloaked men smiled proudly at their work, but their attention was suddenly snapped towards their failed experiment when it spoke. "You bastards! I swear I'll kill you all with my bare hands!"  
  
A middle-aged sorcerer stepped forward from the others and walked towards the bound boy. "You won't even get to lay a finger on us because we will kill you first. Unless you would like to become like your friend... but I'm sure you would rather not go through that again. Am I right?"  
  
Dilandau let out a growl from the back of his throat and tried to lunge at the man, but the restraints only held him back, and they wouldn't come loose. A few chuckled at his attempt, but fell silent when Hitomi suddenly shouted out. "Dilandau!"  
  
Her breathing came faster and her head rolled from side to side as she struggled even more, the straps on her wrists cutting into her skin.  
  
"She's strong... but she won't be able to hold off the effects of the chemicals for long. Just a little bit more, and she's ours..." said Heikurou.  
  
When Hitomi had screamed out Dilandau's name, it hurt his conscious even more. She needed his help... but what good was he? He was a pawn of the sorcerers back then, and he still is... even now.  
  
'I've lost everything I once knew and loved... now I'm going to loose everything once again.' Dilandau lowered his head down in despair. 'Why? Why does this happen to me?'  
  
Once his thoughts stopped though, he came face to face with another sorcerer. "Dilandau... one way or another, we are going to kill you." He glared at the old man. "We could do a quick death, or we could do it slowly... letting some of our other experimental drugs slowly destroy your insides and kill each organ in your body. Or..." the sorcerer gave an evil grin, "we could have our dear Hitomi kill you off herself."  
  
Dilandau knew the choice would not be his, and because he was their failed experiment, they would do anything that would hurt him most.  
  
"It will only be a few more minutes until she is ours, only a few more minutes until your death. Excited Dilandau?"  
  
'Damnit... I can't just let this happen!' Dilandau started to struggle some more with his bonds while the sorcerers just stood and laughed at his attempts. Suddenly, scuffling feet could be heard from just behind the large metal door that blocked the entrance. A few shouts, then the area of the door started to shake. Repeatedly, the door was struck from the other side and finally started to give way. The hinges broke off and the whole metal door fell inside will a huge thud.  
  
The Dragonslayers all ran inside with swords pulled out and ready. The sorcerers that tried to run or fight back were killed. A few went to an unconscious Folken, others ran to where Dilandau was being held, and the rest kept a close watch on what was left of the sorcerers. Dilandau stood there, surprise etched into his features. 'How the hell did they find me?' he thought.  
  
But just as he asked himself this, a certain friend of Hitomi's peeked her head in the doorway. As soon as she saw that everything was under control and safe, Masumi stepped into the room and scanned it with her eyes. Dilandau watched as she soon took in the sight of Hitomi and ran towards her. Her expression was filled with worry and she started to fumble with the straps that held Hitomi down.  
  
Folken had come to and was now standing with the help of two Dragonslayers. Miguel, who ran towards Dilandau when they bust down the door, then took out a knife inside his boot and cut the binds with much difficulty.  
  
"Lord Dilandau, are you ok?" Miguel asked him while cutting at the leather.  
  
"Get these damn restraints off now Miguel..." he ordered him.  
  
Miguel laughed to himself but not out loud. Dilandau's voice had such a serious tone and now was not a time to laugh. 'Yup... he's ok...'  
  
Shesta also came to help out with the restraints and after some time, they all came loose and Dilandau was able to move again. He stumbled over to where Hitomi still lay, his legs slowly gaining back their strength. Masumi had undone all the straps and was now hovering over her, whispering Hitomi's name to try and reach her. She didn't notice Dilandau come over, and when he spoke, she jumped a little in surprise.  
  
"Hitomi? Hitomi can you hear me?"  
  
She seemed to recognize his voice and turned her head towards him, but gave no sign of knowing he was there in reality. Masumi moved aside as Dilandau lifted Hitomi's upper body so she was in a sitting position. He held her to him with one had behind her head and the other around her torso. While Dilandau tried to get a response out of Hitomi, everyone else watched with hopes falling. But another idea hit Dilandau as he glanced at the sorcerers. By signaling a Dragonslayer, one old man was brought forward.  
  
"Tell me how to change her back to normal." Dilandau directed towards the sorcerer.  
  
He almost chuckled at the irony of it but held it back when he saw the glares he was receiving. He tried to look at the leader of the Dragonslayers in the eye, but the glare he received back seemed as though it could burn. Refusing to talk, the old sorcerer averted his eyes as if he didn't hear Dilandau.  
  
Dilandau didn't break his stare. "If any of them refuse to say anything, kill them."  
  
The black-cloaked men looked at Dilandau to see if he was joking, but the look told them otherwise. He was quite serious. When a few refused to talk, they fell into a pool of their own blood, eyes wide, full of pain and surprise. But when a few of the sorcerers got scared, one of them spoke. "There is no cure! There is nothing that will change her back to normal... it's hopeless... she will never be the same again!"  
  
The others nodded their heads in agreement but did not speak. Dilandau then spoke again. "If you're lying, you will die... and if you're speaking the truth, you will die."  
  
The sorcerers all looked at him with horror. Just minutes ago, they had him in their clutches and could have killed him so easily. But now, the tables turned and Dilandau had all of them under his finger. But none spoke of what he hoped to hear. Then a voice brought him out of his thoughts.  
  
"Dilandau..." it was Folken. "They speak the truth... there is nothing we can do for Hitomi... the damage is done... we will have to kill her and end her suffering." He was no longer leaning on someone for support, and the look on his face was dead serious. But still Dilandau refused to believe what was said.  
  
"You're wrong! Everyone's wrong! She will turn back to normal! She won't have to die!" But even as Dilandau spoke the words, he knew that they only sounded hopeful. The truth behind those words and the possibility that they would turn out to be true held less likelihood of ever happening.  
  
Masumi, usually the shy one that never spoke to others, turned to the whole group and took a deep breath. Tears lightly streamed down her eyes, but the light they held gave a different meaning to the tears she shed. They held hope and with that hope, she spoke to everyone. "Don't give up! If we can find a way to bring Hitomi back, we will! We have to at least try... cause if we don't... then we will regret it. Please Lord Dilandau... bring her back."  
  
Masumi was now smiling at Dilandau and Dilandau looked down at Hitomi. She was right... they couldn't give up now. Hitomi could fight it off... she was strong... maybe not so much in body, but in her mind and soul, Hitomi could conquer anything. With help, she could beat it... she could beat what Dilandau could not.  
  
During the time when Dilandau was distracted, a few of the black-cloaked men tried to escape, but the Dragonslayers were too quick and easily cut them down. Folken left, but no one noticed. He had something to take care of... something he had to do on his own.  
  
Striding down the dimly lit corridors of the lower levels, he got lost in his own thoughts. 'How could I have been so blind?' he asked himself. 'Dornkirk is the one who planned all this out... he is the one responsible for everything that has happened... and I just went along and helped his plans the whole time. I must put a stop to all of this once and for all.'  
  
With a determined walk and a sword hanging on his belt, Folken, the one who obeyed Dornkirk and helped Zaibach in all its triumph, made his way towards the melef hanger. Everyone working inside looked at the Stratagos with curiosity, especially when he went and stood on the edge of the entranceway. Folken looked down to the clouds below the Vione. They were close to the city of Zaibach... very close. Folken had abandoned his cape and soon enough had ripped open the front of his shirt, letting it fall down his shoulders, off his mechanical and flesh arm, where it hung still attached to the bottom part around his waist. He clenched his fists, and all the muscles in his back tightened. Suddenly, pure black wings sprouted from his back. Everyone looked in fear and amazement, but just as the dark wings appeared, they disappeared, and soon could be seen in the distance... flying away.  
  
Dilandau on the other hand was doing everything he could to get Hitomi to hear him. Hitomi's eyes had turned blank and she wasn't registering to anything said or done to her. Most of the Dragonslayers had surrounded her where she lay; Masumi was to her right hand side, and Dilandau to her left. Everyone looked in anticipation, hoping that everything would turn out all right. Masumi hoped that they hadn't arrived too late. She was walking down one of the halls in the lower levels when she heard the sorcerers and hid inside one of the rooms. When she saw they had Hitomi and Dilandau, both unconscious and being carried off to their labs, she got a very uneasy feeling. She watched where they were going, and she did the only thing she could think of... she ran to the Dragonslayers. The hard part was finding them and convincing them to believe her. It wasn't hard for them to trust what Masumi was telling them for Dilandau and Hitomi hadn't been seen all day, and neither was in their rooms. As soon as she told them what she had seen and taken them to where the sorcerers were, they almost arrived too late. Dilandau's voice gave away the rooms location, but what they found scared and angered them. Masumi told all this to Dilandau, who listened intently, but still checked on Hitomi.  
  
"We first saw you Lord Dilandau strapped to the table, but when we saw Hitomi in the same position... we didn't know what to think." Masumi directed towards him.  
  
Hitomi stirred a little causing everyone to become silenced and get tensed up. Dilandau was the first to speak. "Hitomi? Hitomi can you hear me?"  
  
He was responded with a slight groan, her emerald green eyes blinking a few times, regaining their focus. They searched the surrounding area, taking in every face and expression. Then she came across Masumi. A slight smile spread her pale lips as she looked at the worried expression her dear friend wore. "Masumi... what are you doing here? Everyone... what happened?"  
  
Dilandau answered for her, "They saved us Hitomi. Masumi gathered the Dragonslayers... the sorcerers will never hurt you or me ever again."  
  
When Dilandau said this, it was as if memories that had haunted him for years were erased or left behind from all memory. Without even knowing it, he genuinely smiled. Hitomi saw the hope and knew that if she gave up, she would fail everyone she ever held faith in, everyone she had ever called a friend, and the only man she ever loved. But just as she felt this, a wave of panic spread throughout her body as control was nearing its end. Soon enough she would fall to the sorcerers' plans.  
  
Hitomi gripped Dilandau's arm as she tried to hold on only a little longer. 'I have to stay in control! I can't loose to this... not after everything that has happened! I will not let anyone else get hurt on my behalf!'  
  
"Hitomi!" Masumi started to call out to her. "Hitomi you have to listen to me! You have to remember everything that has happened! Remember the first time I met you? You were so kind to me... and you must also remember when you saved me! You didn't run for help... even when you knew that you didn't have much training in fighting, you still rushed in and saved my life! Remember Hitomi! Don't loose those memories!"  
  
The Dragonslayers soon saw what Masumi was doing and started to do the same. Shesta spoke up first of all them. "Remember when you came rushing in on our training?"  
  
"Yeah! Then Miguel almost killed you, but Dilandau stopped him in time?" Gatty interrupted.  
  
All the memories... all the times she had experienced on the Vione... they came back to her. Hitomi was remembering everything that had happened once she was taken away from her other friends. She remembered meeting Jajuka when she first woke up in the cell, and how kind he and Folken had been to her.  
  
"What about when you became a Dragonslayer?" Viole piped up. "Remember the dinner, and when you received your new glaive?"  
  
Dallet then voiced his memory, "What about when you came back to the Vione after Fanel had taken you away? And when you saved Shesta from being killed during the battle?"  
  
"Don't forget when you took the hit meant for me in my battle with Van. And don't even think about disregarding the night that all the barriers on my emotions were broken. Don't forget that night and what happened. Please don't leave me now..." Dilandau quietly whispered to her. "I love you..."  
  
Hitomi's thoughts echoed in her head. 'All my memories... I can't loose my memories. Dilandau... everyone... I promise... I will not leave you. I will not let myself be defeated!'  
  
With all the strength possibly left in Hitomi's soul, she pushed away what was fighting for control of her mind. Her body convulsed one last time, eyes snapping shut, and her head jerked backwards. Mind and body were released from a hold that felt unbreakable before, but now it was shattered into nothing. Emotions that were lost returned and memories that had vanished re-emerged.  
  
Everyone surrounding Hitomi looked with eagerness in his or her eyes. Letting out a long breath, Hitomi's muscles relaxed. One wouldn't be able to tell if she was breathing unless they felt her breath on their skin.  
  
The simple task of opening her eyes was hard enough as it was. Her mind just started to regain total control over her body once again and it seemed as if she had to learn how to use it again. All her friends were still around her, and as she opened her tired orbs, she found that they all looked beyond relief. Masumi had tears streaming down her cheeks and Dilandau embraced her even tighter.  
  
Hitomi pulled away from Dilandau's crushing hold to look at everyone. With a little help, she sat upright. "Everyone... thank yo..." but she was interrupted when one of the few sorcerers that had not been killed spoke up. "How did... why is she... but what did you do? She could never have overcome the drugs. How?"  
  
"Any obstacles can be overcome... you just have to figure out how," said Masumi.  
  
"But it was perfect... we fixed all the flaws..." he stuttered.  
  
Dallet then walked towards Dilandau and held out an object. It was Dilandau's sword. Hitomi by now was able to sit without someone's help. The Dragonslayers' red-eyed commander took his sword and unsheathed it. Placing the sheath on the ground, he started to walk towards the frightened sorcerer and spoke. "Nothing is flawless and neither is anything perfect. And in this world, not everyone is merciful."  
  
Without another word, Dilandau rammed his sword into the man's chest, getting his own revenge. Blood started to trickle down the sorcerer's mouth, his eyes alight with pain and utter disbelief. The sword was ripped out of his body, and in the process, he fell to the ground of the lab and lie dead in a pool of crimson blood.  
  
But as Dilandau turned around, he saw Hitomi with her hands to her head. Her eyes were wide open and she kept whispering to herself. He panicked, thinking that the battle was not yet won. Without a second thought, he ran to her side and started to call her name. She didn't respond. No one really knew what to think until she came out of her trance. She looked at Dilandau with a horrified expression on her face. "Hitomi... what happened?! Are the drugs still taking effect?"  
  
Hitomi realized what had happened and shook her head from side to side. "No... I was having a vision. I saw Folken... he's where Dornkirk is! Folken... he's... he's... he's going to die!"  
  
Everyone looked at her in shock, and Masumi said what everyone was thinking. "What do you mean Lord Folken is going to die?"  
  
"I saw it. He's going to kill Dornkirk, but something goes wrong! We have to reach him! We need to warn him!"  
  
"Right. Shesta, Gatty, Miguel, Dallet, and Viole, you will all come with Hitomi and me. We're going to Zaibach's capital. The rest of you stay here and make sure no commotion starts up because of everything that has transpired." Dilandau ordered.  
  
A loud "Yes sir!" was sounded by all the Dragonslayers and each went their separate ways. Masumi had run out of the room earlier and came running back, panting, holding Hitomi's pants, boots, and her glaive. She dressed as quick as she could and took the weapon from Masumi. As Dilandau helped Hitomi to her feet, they walked out of the unpleasant room, leaving what had happened behind them. The five Dragonslayers followed them out as Dilandau made his way towards the guymelef hanger. When they reached it, some of the mechanics were looking out the large opening, but when they saw Dilandau, each quickly got back to their duties. Each slayer had jumped into his own guymelef and started it up. Hitomi looked at Dilandau, silently asking what she would do. He simply got into his own red melef, pressurized the liquid metal, and pointed his arm towards Hitomi. She knew what was going to happen, so trying to stay as steady as she could on her own two feet, she stood and waited. Just like the first time when she had been captured by Dilandau, it was the exact same feel.  
  
The metal wrapped around her upper body, holding her in a secure grip. Her feet left the ground and her body was brought closer to the visor of Dilandau's guymelef. Instead of seeing her enemy's face, she heard his voice. "Are you alright?"  
  
She responded by nodding her head and turning her head to face the open sky of the hanger door. She wanted to leave as soon as possible so she could stop her vision from coming true. She told herself that no matter what, she couldn't let this happen. Dilandau's melef started to walk and the five Dragonslayers followed. Each changed to flight mode and flew out and away from the giant floating fortress.  
  
Dilandau, trying to shield Hitomi the best he could, flew with precision down towards the ground where in the center of the city of Zaibach lay a large looming structure. The six guymelefs flew towards it with no resistance and landed near the entrance. Hitomi was set down onto the ground and everyone jumped out of the cockpits. With weapons in hand, Dilandau, followed by all the others, jogged into the building. The guards that stood guarding it did not even make a move to stop Dilandau or his Dragonslayers. Their uniforms and their commander's face was enough to say who they were. The halls were long and turned every direction. The light was dim, and the smell was thick and dry. But despite everything that might hinder their search, they went down every corridor with full knowledge that they were heading in the right direction. Hitomi, who struggled to keep up, had her eyes closed as she jogged beside everyone and pictured her precious pendant swinging back and forth in her head. She could feel that they were getting closer to Folken by the minute, but she was also weakening by the minute.  
  
Shesta could see Hitomi's weariness and took her heavy glaive from her hands. Her attention snapped to him, but she smiled gratefully and continued to point them all in the right direction. Hitomi's breath started to come much quicker, but it wasn't from the running... she could feel the closeness of her vision coming true. Finally, they turned one last corner and right in front of them was a huge steel door. It was already partially open, and Gatty and Dallet both pushed on it to open it wider. It opened little by little, but finally it got big enough and everyone rushed inside. Hitomi saw a huge globe type object from above and a big machine to her right.  
  
Right in front of the machine was Folken, sword drawn and wings spread. She ran forward, yelling, "Folken! Stop!" but he didn't hear her and took flight, pushing off with his black wings. "Folken! No! You'll die!"  
  
But it was all too late. Dornkirk had stood up from the gigantic machine and invited Folken to kill him. The sword in Folken's hands slashed across Dornkirk's bony chest, but as soon as it hit the edge of the machine, the steel broke, and the piece that snapped off sailed through the air straight towards Folken's chest. With no time to react, the sharp edge of the blade sliced into his skin and pierced him. Folken could feel the life leave him little by little and soon his wings even failed him. He fell towards the ground and landed harshly. His wings swirled away in an imaginary wind, the black feathers drifting away from the bloodied body. Hitomi and the Dragonslayers all rushed towards Folken, who was now surrounded in his own blood.  
  
"Folken..." Hitomi rushed over and knelt down next to him. "Can you hear me?"  
  
The Stratagos stirred a little and opened his eyes to look towards Hitomi. "Hitomi... I'm glad you're all right. I'm... so sorry I was so blind. Why didn't I see this sooner?"  
  
"Please don't worry about that. Just don't die Folken! You can't die!"  
  
"I have a request to make... please tell Van that I love him and I'm sorry for everything. I would also like to be buried in my homeland... Fanelia. Please do this for me." Folken's voice started to grow quieter, and his eyes were loosing their shine.  
  
Hitomi nodded her head as tears started to run from her remorseful eyes. The last words Folken spoke were, "Now I can finally die... in peace... and this time it's for real."  
  
His eyes closed and his body went limp. Hitomi choked out a sob and the Dragonslayers looked silently at the Stratagos' form. A single black feather then drifted down gently next to Hitomi. When she saw it from the corner of her eye, she reached out and picked it up. Tucking it away, she got up from her kneeling position and looked up towards Dornkirk. In a way, he wasn't really alive... but nor was he dead. His brain was alive, but the rest was on a life support system. But now he was dead... Folken and Dornkirk were dead.  
  
'Is it really all over?' Hitomi wondered. 'Is this really the end of the war?'  
  
Almost as if hearing her question, Dilandau walked up to Hitomi and started to speak. "It will be chaotic for a while after all that has happened... but in time everything will come together. There will be peace on Gaea. I don't know how long it will last because fighting and war is just human nature... but at least there will be peace now."  
  
Not even a few days after the whole ordeal, Hitomi along with Dilandau had found Van and went to tell him the news of his brother. Van still felt appalled at what he had done to Hitomi, especially after she confirmed it was she in the guymelef he stabbed. Hatred could still be felt between Van and Dilandau but neither showed it. After everything that had happened had been explained to Van, Allen, Millerna, and everyone else, Hitomi gave the news about Folken. Van took it very hard and at first didn't believe Hitomi. Until she took out Folken's black feather she kept and handed it Van did realization finally hit him. Hitomi relayed Folken's last wishes and words to Van, but all he could do was nod in compliance.  
  
Hitomi knew it would be her last time seeing all her friends, so she spent some time with each person and said her goodbyes. Van gave Hitomi's pendant back to her, but when he heard that she would be leaving, he was heartbroken, but he knew it was for the best. He did have feelings for Hitomi in the past, but now that she found another to love and receive love in return, he could let her go. One day he knew he would find that person... it was just a matter of time. When Hitomi did finally take her leave, everyone wished her well, silently hoping that maybe one day she would come back.  
  
Not to long after the death of Dornkirk, representatives from Zaibach and many other countries had met and agreed on a peace treaty. The news wasn't slow to spread and to everyone's relief, the war was finally over. Countries and towns that had been destroyed started to rebuild, and Escaflowne was put to sleep. Folken was buried deep in the forest behind Fanelia's castle just as he wished. Everything was starting to get back on track... that is all but Hitomi's life.  
  
"What do I do now that the war is over? I can't stay here... I have family back on the Mystic Moon." Hitomi and Dilandau were sitting together in an open field of tall grass. Hitomi was staring at her home world, torn by what decision she would have to make. "But I don't want to just leave you..." she told him.  
  
Dilandau gave off a slight laugh and in return he received a glare from his green-eyed seer. "Hitomi... did you ever think to ask my opinion?"  
  
Hitomi shook her head from side to side. "I don't want to put you in the middle of my problems."  
  
"The Dragonslayers have all gone off on their own... to find lost family, and to start a new life. They are no longer Dragonslayers. They are normal people that live on this world. But I don't have family to go back to. I have nothing waiting for me here and there is nothing that promises a new life for me. Too many people know me by looks... I couldn't just move on. And if you left, I don't know what I would do. You're the only thing that I have left."  
  
"Dilandau..." Hitomi started to say but he interrupted her.  
  
"If you want, I'll go back with you. I'll go to the Mystic Moon... that way I could really start a new life, and... I could be with you."  
  
Hitomi's eyes lit up and she looked at Dilandau with much excitement. "Are you serious? Would you really do that?"  
  
He nodded his head and smiled at her. In all her happiness, Hitomi threw her arms around Dilandau's neck, which sent him to the ground. Both teens lay there in the grass and laughed. When their laughter died down, Dilandau pulled Hitomi's head down towards his. Their lips melded together as both released their feelings, and emotions. Yes... a new life... a life with much promise... a life where there is peace on both worlds... for in a future of promise, things change.  
  
"Accept the things to which fate binds you, and love the people with whom fate brings you together, but do so with all your heart." - Marcus Aurelius  
  
~*~Credits~*~ (After you read your comment, please go to the very bottom and read the last paragraph.) (P.S. You know how freaking long it took to type these? Too long...)  
  
Feye Morgan- You reviewed for every chapter! From the depths of my soul... thank you so much! Thank you for being my first reviewer on my story too. Your random comments were always hilarious and made me laugh. And you were always on the right track when you wondered what was coming up next. It was like you were reading my mind! AHH! Stop reading my mind! Hehe... just kidding. Thank you SO much for your continuing support! It meant so much to me!  
  
the original esca chick- You nearly reviewed for every chapter except for chapter 1! Oh well... I'll give you a huge hug though for always reviewing and being there! * hugs * And you always understood why I couldn't update so soon. I see you had to change your name to the original esca chick... did you have to change it a little cause someone else had it and blah blah blah... just like how I had to put a number on the end of my freakin' authors name?! AHH! Ok... well thanks for reading and reviewing!!! And I hope you update some of your other fanfictions soon too! Thanks again!  
  
Kat-Tastrophe- You reviewed for a lot of the chapters and even though it wasn't all of them, I still thank you for reviewing for most of them. Even though your reviews consisted of mostly one word, I'm glad you actually posted a review. It helped me know that you were still reading and it was still interesting. Thanks for reading!  
  
Blue Demon- You were also another person who reviewed later on, but after chapter 6, you pretty much stuck with it and reviewed every chapter. And you know what I noticed you say a lot in your reviews? 'Yay, all praise', and you use the word love a lot. Lol... but it was much appreciated. By the way... you don't happen to have a blue car with a license plate that says BlueDemon... do you? Cause at our school, I saw a car in the parking lot with that license plate. I don't know if it's coincidence that your author's name and a license plate were the same... but in this world, you never know. Lol... thanks so much!  
  
Xelena- You always gave probably the longest reviews... but that was probably cause in the beginning you put a few chapters in one review. Lol... but I really did appreciate it. You commented about a lot of stuff and I'm glad you did cause it gave me insight on how certain things that I wrote about were. I hope you are able to read this cause you stopped reviewing at chapter 14. Thanks so much for reading and taking time to write such long reviews!  
  
Rai Dorian- Thanks for wishing me Happy Birthday back then. You were one of the few who actually did. And thanks for your review in chapter 7. You were another one of few who actually gave me advice on my story. You gave me suggestions on what to do and were very cool about it. I would never take your reviews as flames. Thanks for reading, and for all the help. Oh and remember 'screwing like rabbits'. Lol... that always makes me laugh... but it's so true.  
  
Fanta- You were one out of two people that actually gave me advice on my story. I really appreciate it and I understand everything you were telling me. I cannot become a better writer if I don't get critism, so I thank you, truly, for the review you sent. I hope you read the rest of my fanfiction and tell me how you like it. Thank you so much.  
  
fOX-SPIRIT AKA Y.V- Glad you like DxH coupling, but where did you go?  
  
Rina- Your cats =^-^= never fail to amuse me. I'm glad you really liked my story so much that you would be late to work just to read the chapter. Lol... but still thanks so much. It's ok that you didn't review for every chapter. I'm still happy that you actually reviewed and know that my story is still out there... lol. So Hitomi is your queen? Lol... Thanks again!  
  
hawaiikel- Thanks for reviewing for all the chapters that you did towards the end. Usually people just read it and review for the last chapter they read. To answer some of your questions... I was kind of confused on the pilot getting killed by the liquid crima. I don't know what you mean by that. And Hitomi couldn't radio in on Dilandau cause she really didn't have any time to yell at him... especially when Dilly is in the heat of battle, listening to the intercom is off his mind. They did stitch her wound, but the bandage had to be changed because of course the wound would bleed and the bandage would need to be changed. I really didn't want to get into detail. Lol... you're probably right in when I needed to say compassion instead of passion. I write late at night... but I do read it over... guess it just didn't register as wrong in my mind. Anyways, hope you like how it ended and thanks for reading and reviewing!  
  
Divine Discontent- I'm glad it was intriguing and it had a good plot. But after 3 chapters, I lost you. Hope you read it all! Thanks for reviewing anyways though!  
  
Ankle- Got 3 reviews, all of them had the words good or like in them. Lol... thanks for reviewing. I'm just wondering how you got your authors name to be Ankle...  
  
Platinum-Djinn- I can't believe that after you read one chapter, you actually put my fanfiction on your favorites list. But after 5 chapters, I lost you. Lol... and you really like DxH coupling. Lol... well I hope you get to read the rest of it. Thanks for your cute reviews.  
  
Sarina Fannel- Umm... you said in your one review that this was an original AU fanfiction... it's not AU at all... but thanks for reviewing later on to let me know you were still reading. I dunno if its 'one of the most ultimate best d/h fics ever' but thanks so much for the complement! It really made my day.  
  
Telis- Sorry I didn't have much more drama between Hitomi and Van... it would have been interesting none the less, but I couldn't fit it in. Thanks for reviewing!  
  
Venus of Love- Kinda lost you after chapter 6 but I hope you read the rest. I'm happy that you thought my fanfiction was so great and thanks for reviewing!  
  
Emerald- Thanks for wishing me a happy birthday and thanks for reviewing. I hope you read the rest of my story and tell me what you think. Thanks for reviewing the chapters you did read though!  
  
Nel- Allen bashing is good, Van bashing is not too much of me, but Dilly- goodness is defiantly a good thing. Lol... and I'm glad you like 'twists and crap'. Thanks for reading and reviewing!  
  
lilpopcorngurl- So my story, in your own words, is milk? LOL! You know my nickname is Milky? It's a long story... but that cracked me up. Thanks so much for your reviews.  
  
General Mevneriel- I'm sad to see it ending to... but all things must come to an end... thanks so much for reading!  
  
Magicman/Smokegirl- You two constantly crack me up. Your reviews are funny... especially Smokegirl... you just want to kill... Thanks for your reviews! They made my day.  
  
Kazumi- I noticed you always end your reviews with 'plzplzplz update soon ja ne ;p'. Lol... thanks for reading!  
  
snowykittenz- Thanks so much for reading and reviewing... but I have one question. Is this a cat bowing its head? ~^_._^~ It's really cute, and you really like to * poke * ... don't you? Thanks again!  
  
Sapphire-StarLight- I'm glad you still kept with my fanfiction. You were right with Folken still on the ground... lol... but thanks so much for reviewing and reading!  
  
Moonwind- Thanks for reviewing and giving some insight on a few of the chapters!  
  
Lady Starlight so kiss my ass- Woo... where did you get that name anyways? Well... I hope the pairing of DxH didn't scare you away cause you said in your review that you wanted it to be VxH. I still hope you read till the end! Thanks for your review though!  
  
Frostmourne- I forgot what your old author's name was... but I'll just go with this name for your comment. Lol... thanks so much for your continuing support during the later half of my story! I love when you said 'Oh my gorilla's bananas...' That was just too funny! I love the fanfictions you have going too! I conjure the mood up really easily? So do you! And if you wanted to learn from me... I have no clue how I would teach you. Lol... and don't give up on writing because of your parents! You have a true talent for writing and nothing should stand in the way of it! Thanks for all the awesome and inspiring comments! Thank you so much for reviewing and reading and everything!  
  
dilly's lover- Dilandau is sexy! So hot... anyways... thanks for reviewing!  
  
ice- I'm glad you think my fic is different from other fanfictions, and I'm glad that you are loyally waiting for more chapters. Thanks for your reviews and amazing comments!  
  
Young Hitomi- I'm glad you like my story, and I'm glad I didn't turn it into a lemon. Thanks for your reviews!  
  
Chichi8- I'm glad you didn't really find any grammar mistakes and I'm glad you like my fanfiction. Thanks so much for reading!  
  
Dilandau-is-My-Boyfriend- I'm so happy that I actually changed your view on D/H fics! They really aren't that bad... it just depends on the author. I'm honored to know I'm on your author alert system too. But do you always have to be watching me? It freaks me out... * shivers * Lol... Thanks so much for reviewing!!  
  
supergirl- I'm so happy to know that you love my story so much! Thanks for reading and reviewing!  
  
fallen-dark-angel- It's one of the greatest stories you've ever read? * Blushes * Thank you so much! It made me feel so giddy when I read your review! Oh, sweet name by the way...  
  
To all who reviewed one chapter... you read up to certain points... but then I lost you all. Did you die? Well, I'll list your names, a few have comments next to their names...- ChessyPuff (Name related to South Park?), Orestes, Dee (Your review made me smile), chibs, Mause, R.D, Shunu No Miko, chibi-ken14, Kat, zo, Faraday, Yamchas Big Pants (Where in the world did you come up with that name?), Paru-chan, Chrimson Rogue, Allen Haters Anonymous (Like Alcoholics Anonymous? Lol...), jess131346, Gryphon Gal, Neko-Metallium, Nihongo (Your name is Japanese in English... does that make sense?), yukari, Redundant Goddess, JO, Waterwing_13, Ruby, Moon Smurf, P- chan, Epoch9, areka hakai, warriorwitch, Fictional-gal, SPINX, fanty, AFCAMistress, Ronin_mage (my friend would love your name), Shadowcat, fluer21, Always Dreaming (Love your name), Anna-May, Hell's Fury (Glad you think my story kicks A$$)  
  
To EVERYONE!  
  
This is the end of my story. There will be no sequel, and no epilogue. I'm sorry if those of you who hoped for one are disappointed, but sequels always suck... and trying to figure out a plot is a pain in the butt cheek. So I leave it at this... thank you to those who constantly supported me, and to those who gave me good criticism! Surprisingly I received no flames in the entirety of making this fanfiction, and I'm very happy at that. If you have a question, put it in your review and I'll answer you by e-mail. Always keep an eye out for future fanfictions by me, and remember to write, read, and dream to your hearts content. Never let anything stand in your way, for nothing can keep you from expressing yourself. Remember that there will always be promise in your future if you look.  
  
~MysticalDreamer32~ 


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